Beyond The End
by aks100
Summary: Set in a slight AU where Lily and James live. Is a sequel to my fic To The End. Harry is 5 years old and is growing up with his parents. He has a secure family and friends. What could his upbringing have been like if Lily and Jame lived...pre HBP
1. A Harry Birthday

**A Harry Birthday**  
  
Lily Potter stood in the doorway of her bedroom and stared at the bed. Her emerald eyes sparkled with love and happiness. On the bed lay her husband James potter with his messy black hair, that had been made messier by a night of sleep. He was fast asleep with their children, Harry and Emma, cuddled against him on either side. That had been the reason Lily had spent the night in her daughter's room. She sighed and went to the dressing table and picked up a brush to brush her long red hair. She looked at the bed from the mirror. Their son was beginning to stir. He looked up tiredly and on seeing his mum he climbed out of bed and walked over to her  
  
"Hello Mummy" He said, rubbing his eyes  
  
"Good morning Harry." She said. She lifted Harry onto her lap. He had the same messy hair as James. She had tried to tame it but soon gave up when she realised it would never be tamed. Harry looked exactly like James but his eyes were the same bight emerald green as Lily's and his nose wasn't as straight. The only thing that he hadn't inherited from either parent was a thin lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead where a dark lord had tried to kill him and failed. Lily hared the scar. It was a constant reminder of how she had nearly failed as a mother.  
  
"Guess what" Harry said in a hushed excited voice.  
  
"What?" Lily asked, sounding interested and excited. She already knew what Harry was going to say. He beckoned for her to bring her face closer to his mouth. He reached up and put his arms around Lily's neck.  
  
"It's my birthday" He whispered. Lily looked at him pretending to be shocked.  
  
"Really? No wonder you look like a big boy." Lily said giving Harry a cuddle. Harry beamed. "I'll give you your present when your dad and sister wake up." Lily said. Harry nodded and looked to the other half of his family.  
  
"DADDY! EMMA!" He shouted. Emma gave a babyish moan that escaped her lips, her face hidden underneath her red hair. James didn't even stir! Harry looked rather offended that they were ignoring him Lily laughed and put Harry on the floor.  
  
"Come on, your present is in the living room." Lily said. Harry ran out of the room as fast as he could.

* * *

James rushed into the kitchen. He was already running slightly behind schedule. Lily was standing by the sink reading a letter. Harry and Emma were at the table eating breakfast, or trying to. Harry kept flicking bits of soggy cereal at Emma.  
  
"Good morning James" Lily said not looking up.  
  
"Morning." He said quickly. He went to her and gave her a quick kiss. Lily looked at him after this.  
  
"Aren't you forgetting something?" She asked him. He looked at her momentarily confused then it dawned on him. He turned around.  
  
"Happy Birthday Harry!" James said loudly as Harry flicked another piece of soggy cereal at his nearly three year old sister.  
  
"Harry!" Lily snapped. Harry looked at her innocently as Lily began to tidy up Emma, who was brushing cereal off herself.  
  
"DADDY!" Harry shouted. James ruffled Harry's hair then turned to Lily.  
  
"Who was the letter from?" He asked  
  
"Sirius" Lily said.  
  
"But he just lives down the road" James said, picking up a slice of Lily's toast.  
  
"Sirius is Lazy" Lily said like that answered everything "He just owled to say that he's gotten April pregnant..." Lily picked up Emma and Emma nestled in Lily's arms. Lily frowned. "...again" James laughed.  
  
"How many is that now? Three or four?" James asked.  
  
"Its not exactly hard to count children James!" Lily said, "Give it a year and they'll probably be on their fourth." James smiled.  
  
"Yeah, probably. I hope not though, two godchildren is enough, a third on the way," James pretended to look grief stricken. Lily looked at Emma.  
  
"Do you want to hit daddy or shall I?" She asked. Emma smiled  
  
"I do it!" Emma said.  
  
"No! Not Emma!" James said pretending to beg, "Anything but Emma!" Emma began laughing so Lily clapped James just from behind her head.  
  
"Shouldn't you be at work?" Lily asked.  
  
"Oh yeah!" James said. He was about to leave when Lily cleared her throat. James turned and looked at Lily, "What have I forgotten now?" Lily smirked and pointed to her lips. James grinned and went over to Lily. He pressed his lips onto hers and gave her a nice gentle kiss for the morning. He was about to leave when Lily cleared her throat again  
  
"What!" James asked.  
  
"You said you'd take Harry to work today" Lily said quietly. Harry grinned at James and James frowned.  
  
"Um, well today I'm-" Lily silenced him with a look  
  
"James you promised him." She said in a slightly quieter voice so that Harry wouldn't hear. "Harry's been looking forwards to this since Christmas." James nodded.  
  
"Alright, alright." He muttered, "The things I do for my family." He rolled his eyes before turning to Harry. "Come on Green eyes." James said. Harry jumped off his chair.  
  
"Bye Harry" Lily said as Harry ran out after James. She turned to Emma when Harry didn't reply. Emma was playing idly with Lily's necklace. "Lets get you cleaned up." She said. Emma grinned and tried to lift Lily's necklace off. "No, no you can't play with the necklace." Lily said.  
  
"Why? Necklace is pretty." Emma said.  
  
"Yes but it's expensive. Aunt Jenny bought it for me." Lily said fingering her necklace. She, April Black and Jenny Lupin all had identical necklaces that had been made specially for them. They had all put in money but Jenny had put in more money then the other two.  
  
"Is Rhia come today?" Emma asked. "Rhia and Orion?"  
  
"I don't know" Lily said honestly.  
  
"I go to Rhia's house?" She asked. Lily smiled.  
  
"No, mummy has the day off work today so you can play with me for a while." Emma grinned and cuddled Lily. Lily was about to head up the stairs to put Emma in a bath when the doorbell went. Lily made a detour and went to the door. She opened the door and saw a tall man with fairly long black hair and sparkling brown eyes looking at her with a grin. He had a travel bag in one hand and a young blond haired girl attached to the other.  
  
"Ah, Lily my darling." He said, leaning forwards and kissing Lily on the cheek as a friendly gesture.  
  
"Sirius, what are you doing here?" Lily looked at the girl, "with Rhia?"  
  
"April kicked me out so I stole my daughter."  
  
"That's called kidnapping Sirius." Lily said patronisingly.  
  
"Yeah, I know but also because April asked me to drop Rhia off anyway to play with Emma." Emma grinned and she wiggled out of her mum's grip. The little blond girl let go of Sirius' had and the two girls went running up the stairs. Lily rolled her eyes and shut the door.  
  
"So why's April kicked you out?" Lily asked heading to the living room.  
  
"I got her pregnant." Sirius said simply.  
  
"When will you learn Sirius. April doesn't like being pregnant!" Lily said. Sirius shrugged.  
  
"Not my fault." He said. "I mean, I can't help it if the woman can't keep her hands off me." I swatted Sirius' arm.  
  
"Don't talk about April like that" I said warningly. "Ok, you can sleep here." Lily waved her wand at the sofa and it turned into a bed.  
  
"Now that's what you call a sofa bed." Sirius grinned.  
  
"Not funny"  
  
"Damn."

* * *

James held onto Harry's hand as he led him through the auror headquarters. Harry couldn't be anywhere safer. James led him to an office that he shared with Harry's godmother, April Black. He opened the door and saw the blonde woman furiously stamping files and folders.  
  
"Stupid idiot, had to go and...urgh!" She slammed the files on the desk and James jumped. Harry looked around curious and fascinated. The woman looked up and glared at James. She stood up. "Learn to control your friend, he is so irritating you will not believe it!"  
  
"I can't help it. You chose to marry him." James said uncertainly. Harry looked at April.  
  
"Aunty April!" Harry said. April looked at Harry and smiled quickly.  
  
"Kids." She muttered. She sat down again as James closed the office door. There were two more people they shared an office with but they weren't in yet. James put his auror cloak on a hat stand and sat in his chair, putting his feet on his desk. Harry wondered around looking at everything in the room. It wasn't really that fascinating but it made a change from classrooms and the house for Harry.  
  
"So tell me more." James said casually.  
  
"I didn't want kids until I was at least twenty eight, and what does Sirius go and do? He got me pregnant at twenty two, I'm now twenty five and I'm still letting them out! That man doesn't know the meaning contraception-"  
  
"April, Harry's in the room." James said. April glared at James.  
  
"I didn't want kids James."  
  
"You seemed happy about it yesterday, what was it..." James smirked, "'Orion is the cutest baby that I have ever seen'" He said mimicking April's voice. James felt a spell hit him and he toppled off the back of his chair backwards. Harry started laughing.  
  
"That's a rubbish impression James." April said, laughing slightly. James got up and grinned.  
  
"Where's Orion anyway?"  
  
"Mum's" April said.  
  
"Rhia?"  
  
"Yours hopefully if that poor excuse for a man did his job properly!" April said. James shook his head. April got up and went to Harry. "Happy birthday Harry." She said with a smile. Harry grinned, someone had remembered.  
  
"Present." He said. April laughed.  
  
"I'll give it to you later, is that ok? I left it at home with Sirius." Harry nodded.  
  
"I'll have the present later." Harry said. "Is it a broom like Mummy gave me?" April looked at Harry surprised. She sat on her chair with Harry on her lap.  
  
"Your mum gave you a broom?" She asked surprised. Harry nodded. April looked at James.  
  
"It was her idea, I swear." James said with a smile.  
  
"Mum said I can learn to play quidditch now. I want to be seeker." Harry said with a grin.  
  
"Wow." April said slightly stunned. "Well done James, what did you do to her?" She asked slightly amused. James shrugged.  
  
"I don't know. Oh, do you want to come round later? Lily's throwing a small party, because, it's Harry's birthday and because she's finishing Healer training today. Tonight she'll be a fully trained Healer." James got a slightly misty eyed look. "I love the Healer uniforms." He said.  
  
"Your son is in the room." April laughed. James shrugged.  
  
"Never mind" James said. Just then a paper airplane flew into the room. Harry watched it and caught it before April could. He opened it up and pretended to read it and look important.  
  
"What do we have to do today captain Harry?" James asked.  
  
"Kill the evil wizards."  
  
"Ah, but you've already done that for us." James said. He hated that scar on Harry's forehead almost as much as Lily did for the same reasons as Lily did. That's one of the reasons why they had made sure that Harry had as little exposure to the Wizarding world as possible. So many people wanted to see the famous Harry Potter, the boy who lived, the boy who killed Lord Voldemort. James and Lily lived in the countryside of Wales, just down the road from Sirius and April, who had moved in a few months after Rhia had been born. Their other friends Remus and Jenny Lupin lived further away in some secluded woods. Having two werewolves in their family had really hampered Jenny's social life but she didn't seem to mind. She was the only person in all of history who seemed to be able to go near a werewolf without being bitten. It was just her son she had to watch out for.  
  
"Which evil wizards do we have to kill today?" April asked. Harry looked at the parchment and screwed up his face in concentration  
  
"P-Potter and Mar-Marsden. N...New ass-" Harry stopped and looked at April. "You have to kill New Ass" April and James started laughing and Harry looked at them confused then looked back at the parchment again. Maybe he'd read it wrong!  
  
"Harry, can I have the parchment please?" James asked. Harry went to James and gave him the parchment. Harry climbed onto James' lap and then climbed onto the desk and sat watching his dad with his legs swinging and hitting the drawers below the desk.  
  
"So what do we have to do?" April asked.  
  
"Oh," James said with a frown. "Um, we have to go and guard the Longbottoms. Apparently there's another ex-Death Eater out to kill them" April shook her head in pity.  
  
"As if they haven't suffered enough. I went to go and visit young Neville Longbottom a few days ago. He seemed to be ok. I hope you don't mind but I told his grandma that he could play with Harry when he wanted." April said. "I just feel so sorry for him."  
  
"Oh, it's fine. It's the least we can do to help the Longbottoms." James said. April smiled.  
  
"So when are we on duty?"  
  
"We start tomorrow. Before then we have to go and get some information on something called a Firearm, a muggle thing." James frowned and looked at his arm. April looked slightly puzzled as well.  
  
"A fire arm? I didn't think that Muggles were clever enough to set themselves on fire without burning themselves." April said.  
  
"Well, I would ask Lily what it is but she's at home. I suppose it's a trip to the misuse of Muggle artefacts office." James said.  
  
"Oh, I know that the head of that department is supposed to be weird but that Aurthur Weasley..." April looked around like someone was going to hear them, "He collects plugs." She said uncertainly. James raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Really?" James asked, "Where do you pick that up?"  
  
"Oh, the girls from the Law enforcement office are always talking and the Muggle Relations men, they seem to think despite this wedding band here-" she held up her left hand, "I'm still single. You'd be surprised with the amount of information I've managed to draw out of many of the kids around here"  
  
"We're some of the youngest in the ministry" James said rather bemused. April shrugged and leaned back in her chair. There was a loud bang and April reached for her wand. James reached for his wand but couldn't find it. They both looked at the source of the bang and saw Harry lying on the desk laughing. He held James' wand in his right hand.  
  
"HARRY!" James said, "How many times have I told you not to play with my wand?" Harry grinned and his green eyes sparkled. April put her wand away slowly.  
  
"Merlin, James. I thought I had it tough. I'm glad I didn't have a son the same time as you had Harry, can you just imagine that? Another Potter and Black and then there'd be Bo, so another Lupin and all you'd need is Wor-" April stopped. James looked at her darkly. Pettigrew's betrayal was still very fresh in his memory. Lily and James hadn't really been able to make any new friends for about two years after, it wasn't until Harry had begun to go to school that they had to force themselves to begin trusting others again.  
  
"Don't talk to me about him." James said darkly.  
  
"Sorry." April muttered, "His name just sort of slipped out. You know we have to go and see him next week."  
  
"I know." James said putting his wand roughly back into his pocket and poking himself in the process. He swore and sat down.  
  
"Dad, you swore. Mummy won't be happy" Harry said in a matter of fact voice.  
  
"If you don't tell your mum, I'll buy you an ice cream on the way home." James said. Harry grinned.  
  
"I won't tell her." Harry said.

* * *

Lily sighed as Rhia and Emma ran past her and into the fields that made up her back garden. The Potters didn't really have a garden, as such. Their house was in the middle of a field, quite far from the main village and was set in amongst the hills that surrounded Godric's Hollow. Godric's Hollow was named after the house that the Potter's house had been built over. Their house was called Godric's Hollow and it did get confusing sometimes but Lily and James knew how to deal with it.  
  
"EMMA! RHIA!" Lily shouted. "Be Careful...Oh why do I even bother?" Lily said letting the door stay open. Sirius had raided Lily's fridge and was half way through a tub of ice cream.  
  
"That's what you get for marrying and having the kids of my bestest friend" Sirius said. Lily slapped him round the back of the head. "What?"  
  
"Shut up Sirius." Lily said. "How is your mother?" Lily asked. Sirius scowled.  
  
"Oh, her, she died." Sirius said, "I've got her house and everything but I really don't want it."  
  
"Well what are you going to do with it? It's in London isn't it?" Lily asked with her wand out. She was eyeing various areas of the kitchen. Sirius looked at her slightly confused.  
  
"Yeah it is but I went to go there after mum's funeral and it's so dark and depressing and there's this whopping great ugly portrait of her in the hall way and it screams at me every time I see it." Sirius shuddered. A smirk appeared on Lily's face.  
  
"Well I can go and have a look to see if I can try and get it down, ah!" Lily pointed her wand at the corner of the room.  
  
"What are you doing?" Sirius asked Lily. A jet of streamers shot out of the end of Lily's wand and she decorated the kitchen with various decorations.  
  
"If you haven't forgotten Darling," Lily said turning to Sirius, "It's Harry's Birthday today." Sirius went slightly pale.  
  
"How could I forget?" He asked. Lily rolled her eyes.  
  
"You're a crap liar Sirius."  
  
"How come I managed to trick you all through Hogwarts and I can't trick you now?"  
  
"You never could trick me at Hogwarts, I just let you get away with what you got away with because you were James' friend and April was dating you." Lily said.  
  
"Yeah but before that."  
  
"Like I could be bothered to try and find you all those times." Lily said, "Where's Orion?"  
  
"April's mum's house." Sirius said. Lily smirked.  
  
"She doesn't trust you with Orion?" She asked, rather amused.  
  
"No." Sirius said looking rather upset.  
  
"Well he is only one and a half, I remember you dropped Rhia a few times when she was that age."  
  
"She bounced back though, she never hurt herself." Sirius said in a defensive voice.  
  
"And you're lucky she didn't" Came the voice of a young woman. Lily and Sirius turned to the open door and grinned. A young Chinese woman the same age as Lily stood in the doorway. Her long black hair was tied up and she looked slightly tired.  
  
"AUNTY JENNY!" screamed two girls from outside. The Chinese woman turned and held her arms out as Rhia and Emma hugged her tightly.  
  
"Hi girls." She said.  
  
"Jenny." Lily said with a smile. "How was the full moon?"  
  
"Oh, awful. Bo didn't take his wolfsbane potion. He's being so stubborn at the moment" Jenny said.  
  
"You know, all you have to do is get yourself bitten and you'll have like a little werewolf family." Sirius said with a grin. Jenny gave him an unamused look. "Ok, try this one...have another baby!"  
  
"No, one is fine thank you very much. Two werewolves in the family is way more then enough." Jenny said.  
  
"Is Bo here?" Rhia asked. She ran a hand over her blonde hair.  
  
"He's outside with Remus." Jenny said. The girls ran outside and Jenny came further into the kitchen. "Nice decorations" She commented Lily grinned.  
  
"Thank you." She said perkily.  
  
"Right, Sirius, never never feed your kid sugar again." Came the tired voice of Remus Lupin as he walked into the kitchen as well. His usually sandy brown hair had one or two grey hairs in them and was covered in neon green jelly. His long black robes were also covered in the same neon green jelly. The other adults all raised their eyebrows or looked at him curiously.  
  
"What happened?" Lily asked.  
  
"Emma and Rhia." He said. Lily looked slightly annoyed and Sirius beamed.  
  
"What did they do this time?"  
  
"When has there been a huge hole out in the back garden?" Remus asked, "and one that's full of this...jelly" Remus ran his hands trough his hair to try and get the jelly out of his hair.  
  
"Harry's been into digging holes. I keep falling into them. James is encouraging him even though it's really quite annoying." Lily said tiredly. She picked her wand off the counter and went outside. Rhia and Emma were leaning over a large hole in the ground dipping their hands into something. A young slightly Asian looking boy with dark brown hair stood nearby looking rather innocently at them.  
  
"Come on Bo." Rhia said.  
  
"No, it's ok. You two can play with that...goo." He said peering into it. Lily started walking over. Bo and the girls didn't see her.  
  
"You no fun." Emma said. Bo sidled up to them and carefully lifted his foot and pressed it against the small of Emma's back. She let out a shriek as she tumbled into the green goo filled pit. Rhia started laughing and nearly lost her balance. Lily picked Rhia up by her waist and Bo stepped away looking innocent.  
  
"Emma." Lily said sternly as she lifted Emma out of the hole with magic. It looked as though there was a rope tied around Emma's waist and she was dripping as she was pulled out. Her red hair now a really ugly greeny red. Rhia giggled and Emma looked slightly dazed. When she saw Bo she looked at him slightly annoyed. Bo gave her a grin.  
  
"Sorry." He said.  
  
"Mummy, Bo is mean to me." Emma said, Lily sighed and made Emma float back to the house. Emma seemed to be rather annoyed at first but began to enjoy herself. Bo walked calmly behind Lily and Rhia made herself comfortable in Lily's arms.  
  
"AH!" Sirius shouted, "ALIEN BABY!!" Emma started laughing.  
  
"No!" Emma said like Sirius was stupid, "Emma!"  
  
"Really?" Jenny said, "Doesn't look like Emma" Rhia sniggered and Emma giggled.  
  
"Lily, can I have a chocolate drink please?" Bo asked.  
  
"Help yourself." Lily said. Bo smiled and went to the fridge. "You may want your child back." She said to Sirius. Sirius nodded and took Rhia. Rhia put her arms around Sirius' neck as Lily transferred her to Sirius.  
  
"She's going to be a daddy's girl when she's older." Remus said.  
  
"And is that a problem because?" Sirius asked. Jenny and Remus looked at each other not looking amused.  
  
"You can be an idiot sometimes." Jenny said.  
  
"Mummy, down!" Emma demanded.  
  
"No, bath." Lily said in a motherly tone that she didn't usually take. Emma looked at her surprised and went quiet.  
  
"Lily the mummy." Remus quipped. The adults started laughing gently. Lily turned to Remus.  
  
"It's your son that got her like this." Lily said to Remus. Jenny looked at Bo. Bo looked at her alarmed and ran off into the house.  
  
"I hate being married to a marauder sometimes. The kids have inherited all your traits." Jenny said to Sirius and Remus. Sirius and Remus looked quite proud of themselves. Lily shook her head and made Emma float up to the bathroom.

* * *

**A/N:-So what do you think? should i carry on? up to you guys, please leave a review telling me what you think about this story and I will be almost eternally grateful.**

**Again, this story is for Sweetest-sin980 also known as kaylee. Please read her stories, they are fabulous! though she only has 1 story up at the moment**


	2. Missing Boys

**Missing boys**  
  
"Come on Harry. Lets leave April with her mood swings and you can come with me to get a report off Arthur Weasley." James said to Harry. Harry turned to look at April who was looking at reports and appeared to be seething. Harry nodded quickly, sensing April's anger even where he was at his age. James lifted him off the desk and set him on the floor. Harry waited patiently for James to put his auror robes on and then smiled.  
  
"Where are we going?" Harry asked. He loved coming to work with his dad. Though it was a little bit boring he didn't mind.  
  
"We're going to go and see a crazy red haired man." James said. Harry laughed.  
  
"Is he really crazy?" Harry asked.  
  
"Maybe, I've never really met him before" James said.  
  
"I like crazy people" Harry said. "Like Uncle Sirius, he is mad." Harry said James laughed and glanced at April. April was again engrossed in her paperwork. James pushed the door open and Harry ran out into the busy Auror Headquarters.  
  
"Harry, stay near me." James said. Harry nodded and stuck near James.  
  
"Potter" said someone from a cubicle, a black wizard was leaning out of one of the cubicles.  
  
"Shacklebolt." James said.  
  
"Nice kid you got there? What's he doing here?" Kingsley Shacklebolt asked. Harry smiled.  
  
"He's my son. His birthday and I promised I'd take him to work" James said. Kingsley's eyes went to his forehead. James and Lily were still growing used to people staring at their son's forehead. Kingsley nodded then turned in his seat.  
  
"Look after him. Apparently Malfoy is in the building today. I still don't trust him, despite what the minister seems to think of him." Kingsley said. James smirked.  
  
"Been hanging around with Moody a bit much have we?" James asked. Kingsley grinned.  
  
"There is some wisdom behind that ugly face of his." Kingsley said. James nodded and took Harry's hand. Harry wasn't really paying attention, he was marvelling at the hustle and bustle of the busy auror headquarters. A few people gave him a few curious looks but Harry was growing used to that.  
  
"Come on Harry." James said. Harry followed him, holding onto Harry's hand tightly but let go to open the door. Harry clung onto his dad's auror robes for safety.  
  
"Where are we going?" Harry asked.  
  
"I told you," James said with a smile. "To visit the mad Muggle artefacts man" Harry chuckled. James pushed open a few doors. Harry looked through the windows that lined the wall.  
  
"It wasn't raining earlier!" Harry said with a frown.  
  
"The maintenance wizards are annoyed with the ministry. I think they want a payrise. But that's not for me to decide. Now lets see. Arthur Weasley" James muttered to himself. He looked at a door that led to a small stuffy office. He pushed open the door. The office was fairly small. Smaller then his and April's office. There were two desks squashed in and piles of parchment stacked almost everywhere. There was a red haired man with horn- rimmed glasses on. He was bent over some parchment.  
  
"Fascinating, simply fascinating." He muttered under his breath.  
  
"Mr. Weasley." James asked uncertainly. The red haired man looked up.  
  
"Yes, ah, Mr. Potter" He said. James scowled, how did the man know his name? Probably the same way everyone else knew his name.  
  
"I'm here to collect the fire arms report." James said. Mr. Weasley nodded and got out his wand.  
  
"Here it is. I thought you already had a report on fire arms."  
  
"No, that was bombs" James corrected. Mr. Weasley nodded. James turned around and frowned, where was Harry. "Harry?" James asked looking around. HE went into the hall.  
  
"Harry?" Mr. Weasley asked, "Your son?"  
  
"Yes." James tucked the report into his robes and looked frantically up and down the halls of the ministry.  
  
"HARRY!" James shouted. There was no reply. Mr. Weasley had a look around his office.  
  
"He isn't in here." Mr. Weasley said. "May I ask...what is your son doing here?" James looked at Mr. Weasley.  
  
"It's a long story, basically it's his birthday" James bit his lip nervously. "Shit, Lily is going to kill me. Thank you Mr. Weasley"  
  
"Arthur"  
  
"Well, thank you but I have to go and find my son." James said hurrying down the hall.

* * *

Harry looked at the strange man with very yellow hair, it was nearly white. His eyes were a stony grey colour, like the colour of Emma's ugly grey Dolphin toy. He had a look on his face that Harry had never seen before. It looked like he was happy but not happy at the same time.  
  
"Hello, I'm Harry Potter." Harry said like his mum had taught him to when he met new people. Or was that when he met people his parent's knew? Did his parent know this man.  
  
"Where's you daddy, Harry?" The man asked with a slight smirk. Harry shrugged. "Would you like an ice cream?" Harry grinned. His dad had promised him an ice cream and now this man was offering him an ice cream. His birthday was going really well.  
  
"Yes please." Harry said.  
  
"Follow me then. I'll get you your favourite ice cream." The man said. Harry grinned and followed the man through the big building Harry's dad worked in and out into the street. The man held his hand tightly and Harry followed him happily.

* * *

Lily looked at the clock, James should have been home by now. He had missed the owl coming with Lily's certificate that proclaimed her a proper Healer. She now had a full time Job at St. Mungos if she'd wanted it. Lily had opted for a part time job while Emma and Harry were still young. Sirius was in the living room playing with Bo, Rhia and Emma. There was a barking and Lily jumped in surprise. A large black dog ran into the bedroom and knocked Lily over.  
  
"Padfoot!" Lily snapped. Emma and Rhia came running in after Padfoot and jumped onto Lily's bed. Padfoot sat on his haunches and gave Lily a doleful look. Lily scratched him between the ears and looked at the two young girls.  
  
"I want chocolate." Rhia said as she bounced up and then landed on her bum. Emma followed suit and lay on her front next to Rhia.  
  
"What bout Bo?" Emma asked. Rhia looked at Emma and shrugged.  
  
"He had chocolate earlier." Lily looked in alarm as Emma and Rhia tried to open a fairly large bar of Chocolate.  
  
"Emma." Lily said sternly. Emma stopped absolutely frozen. "Hand me the chocolate or Rhia will have to go home."  
  
"Mum at work, Daddy kicked out." Rhia said with a smile. Lily rolled her eyes. The girls were too clever.  
  
"Give me the chocolate or you will be in big trouble." Emma slowly handed back the chocolate.  
  
"When Daddy come back?" Emma asked  
  
"I don't know." Lily turned to Padfoot. "Go and find James for me." Padfoot nodded and ran out of the room. "Come on girls. Where's Bo?"  
  
"TV" Emma said. Rhia clambered off the bed while Emma grabbed for her mum to pick her up. Lily picked up Emma, she was very light for her age, and carried her downstairs.  
  
"Orion!" Rhia shouted. Lily frowned and looked in the living room. Another young boy had just joined Bo and Rhia. He looked not much older then one and sat against the sofa sucking his thumb. A few tufts of black hair stuck out of his head. Jenny was by the fireplace and Remus was talking to Bo about getting a broom. Apparently Bo wanted a new one but Remus didn't want to get him a new broom. Orion beamed when he saw his older sister. Rhia went over and tried to pick him up.  
  
"No, Rhia, you'll drop him" Jenny said, taking Bo. Rhia pouted but nodded. She loved her little brother.  
  
"You haven't heard from April or James have you?" Lily asked with a frown.  
  
"No" Jenny said, "But they're at work, they've probably be working late."  
  
"They have Harry with them." Lily said.  
  
"Baby sitting." Jenny suggested. Lily frowned uncertainly. Something didn't seem right, James would have sent her an owl to tell her something. There was a crack and Sirius stood nervously in front of them all.  
  
"So, where is my husband?" Lily asked with her arms crossed. Sirius gave her a nervous smile.  
  
"He's working" Sirius said. The others looked at him. Lily got her wand out.  
  
"I know you too well Sirius" She said waving her wand at Sirius, he watched it nervously. "Where is James?"  
  
"Um, there's a slight crisis at his work, April and James are on it."  
  
"And Harry?"  
  
"Um, he's being...looked after" Sirius said.  
  
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jenny asked. Sirius turned to Jenny.  
  
"Um, nothing, just that James has everything under control" Sirius said. That didn't inspire any form of hope in Lily.  
  
"Sirius." Lily said Dangerously. Sirius bit his lip anxiously.  
  
"James lost Harry" He said so quickly Lily nearly missed it all.  
  
"WHAT!" Lily screamed. Sirius scowled.  
  
"He has it under control-" Sirius didn't finish as Lily apparated to the Ministry of Magic. There were people buzzing around everywhere going about their business. Lily knew exactly where James' office was.  
  
"Ok, So we've got Lily out of the way" James said frantically. He looked at April. She was looking at him disapprovingly.  
  
"I still can't believe you managed to lose my godson." She said.  
  
"I know, I'm such a bad father. Ok, Arthur Weasley is searching the lobby. Kingsley has got the security on alert and Sirius is distracting Lily. I have Aurors looking all over the place." James said.  
  
"I can't believe you're trusting Sirius" April said as she shook her head.  
  
"Now, who has been in the Ministry that looks suspicious?" James asked April. April picked up some parchment and looked over it.  
  
"Well, no one really. Oh wait there was-" The door slammed open. April and James both looked at the door. Lily stood in the doorway with her wand out.  
  
"You lost Harry!" Lily asked. James stood up straight.  
  
"I'm very close to finding him." James said nervously.  
  
"You lost our son again!"  
  
"No wait, last time he was hiding under the bed" James said.  
  
"Where is he James!" Lily shouted. A few aurors looked in curiously.  
  
"I told you you shouldn't have trusted Sirius." April muttered.  
  
"And why aren't you out searching for Harry?" Lily said turning back to James.  
  
"I swear I have Aurors on it."  
  
"But why aren't you looking for him? Oh never mind, I'll look for him myself"  
  
"Well anyway" She said in a louder voice. "I think I know where Harry might be, only thing is that the person knows who all of us are, we need someone who this guys doesn't know at all." April said to the two Potters. Lily looked at her.  
  
"Fine who is this guy you're proposing to send to where ever?" Lily asked.  
  
"Well I heard that Lucius Malfoy was in today to give another 'donation' to Fudge" April said "and he was in about the time James here lost Harry."  
  
"What time did Harry go missing anyway?" Lily asked them. April looked at her uncertainly.  
  
"Um..." April looked at James. Lily looked at James expectantly.  
  
"About an hour after he got here." James said with a wince like he was expecting a curse to fly his way. Instead Lily stayed quiet and turned to April.  
  
"Do what you need to in order to get my son back. I'll be at home because I have other children to look after." Lily said, emphasising the word 'children'. James gave her a sympathetic look.  
  
"I'm so sorry Lily" He started to say.  
  
"Don't even talk to me James. Find Harry and bring him straight home!" Lily said before leaving the room.  
  
"Well, that went well." April said writing a small letter on a parchment.  
  
"Shut up April." James said rather depressed. "What plan have you got?"  
  
"Get your invisibility cloak James." April said. James looked at April uncertainly.  
  
"What are you planning?" James asked. April sighed.  
  
"We're going on a few raids, you do remember that the ministry is conducting raids on houses since Moody got attacked by those ex-Death Eaters." April said to James.  
  
"Yeah I know that, but who's house are we raiding? Why do we need the invisibility cloak?"  
  
"Merlin! I swear, for a marauder you're really thick! We're going to follow some raids and not be seen. The moment most people see an auror they get all freaked out. If we're under an invisibility cloak we don't have to answer awkward questions and we can do our own searching!" April said. James looked at her with a frown.  
  
"Yeah but-" April sighed.  
  
"Fine, forget about that plan." April said.  
  
"Oh, I have a different plan." James said. He sat in thought for a while. "Ok, who was it that you suspected had taken Harry?"

* * *

Arthur Weasley knocked on the door to a large manor, he had several officers with him. He was doing a raid. Raids were more common now a days and there was a sudden increase of dark object available on the black market. It was partly Arthur's job to stop that kind of thing. The door opened and a tall man with platinum blond hair stood in the doorway. He wore black robes and looked at Arthur like he was inferior to him.  
  
"What do you want Weasley?" He sneered.  
  
"House inspection, Malfoy, open up the doors and let us through." Arthur said. Malfoy rolled his eyes and stepped aside and let Arthur in with his officers.  
  
"Remember check everywhere." Arthur said. He gave Malfoy a smug look and began to look around Malfoy Manor. The officers spread out into different rooms. Arthur went into the living room and looked around. He felt a slight feeling of jealousy that his home wasn't like this but then that was because his family, though poor, was respectable...almost. There was a young boy, about five, sitting on a sofa playing with a small toy of a Dragon. The boy was pulling the dragon's head and it's tail in opposite directions and grinning as he did so. He had the same blonde hair as the older Malfoy and the same cold grey eyes. He looked up when Arthur walked into the room.  
  
"Who are you?" He asked.  
  
"I'm from your dad's work." Arthur said politely. The child gave him a contempt look. 'He's going to be a nice child' Arthur thought sarcastically. He began to search the room thoroughly. The boy just sat and stared at him with a sneer on his face. A lovely child really. Arthur left the living room after having found a dark potion. He went to the basement where one of the officers, Gordo, was searching.  
  
"Gordo." Arthur said.  
  
"I think I hear a child. How many children do the Malfoy's have?"  
  
"One, and I met him in the living room. Lovely kid" Arthur said. Gordo looked at him with a smirk before his face turned serious again  
  
"Help me open this door." Gordo said. Arthur got out his wand and pointed it at the door. Him and Gordo blasted it with spells until it finally opened. Even once the locks had been broken it took a lot of effort to push it open. Inside was a fairly bare room and a young boy with black hair sitting on the floor with a red face. He looked as though he'd been crying. Arthur looked at Gordo and went to the child. He whimpered and curled up against the wall.  
  
"It's all right, Harry" Arthur said, "I'm your daddy's friend. You know, Arthur Weasley?" Harry looked up curiously.  
  
"The Muggle lover?" He asked. Arthur gave him a smile. Harry got up slowly and looked at him curiously. Gordo stood at the door. Harry looked at Arthur, "Where's Daddy?"  
  
"He's looking for you. If you come with me then I'll take you to him." Arthur said.  
  
"Where is the man who said he was going to buy me ice cream?" Harry asked.  
  
"He's going to be taken away and questioned." Arthur said. Harry looked at Arthur suspiciously. He had reason to. "Come on, I'll take you to play with my own son, he's called Ron. Then I'll send an owl to your parents and tell them to collect you." Harry looked at Arthur and took his hand.

* * *

"Lily, please just talk to me." James said to Lily the next morning. Lily turned to him.  
  
"Why? You lost our son and you're not even doing anything about it!" Lily said.  
  
"I am"  
  
"Oh yeah? Trying to get into my knickers is really trying something isn't it?" Lily said. "I don't see you out there looking for Harry!"  
  
"That's because the plan won't work until now." James said. Lily looked at him and went to Emma's room where she was just climbing out of her bed. James followed.  
  
"Stay away from me James." Lily said, she got her wand out as she turned. Emma stopped still and watched her parents. "Just let me get on with my job and you get on with yours." James nodded reluctantly.  
  
"Alright, but please, just relax, we'll find Harry." James said. Lily looked at him like she wanted to believe him. Lily turned to pick up Emma.  
  
"Come on, lets get you ready to go to Jenny's house." Lily said to Emma. James threw his hands up in the air as he left the room. He stumbled forwards as a stinging hex hit his shoulder. He turned to see Lily looking at him rather annoyed. James went downstairs and decided to have a drink of that Coffee drink that Lily always had. He picked up the mug and looked at it. What did Lily put into the Mug? He put the mug down so hard in frustration that it broke. James let out a stream of swear words. He was about to repair the mug when a bundle of brown feathers hit the window. James whipped out his wand and looked slightly surprised when he saw an owl sliding down the window.  
  
"Ok-" James said uncertainly. He'd never seen an owl doing that before. He opened the back door and went outside to retrieve the owl. The owl had a letter attached to his leg and when James put him on the counter he was able to take the letter off the owl. James opened up the letter and read it quickly. He quickly burst into a smile and picked up his cloak.  
  
"Lily, going to pick up Harry!" He called up. There wasn't a reply. James left uncertainly.

* * *

Harry sat on a big slightly worn down sofa in a messy house. He didn't know what he was doing here, why did he come with this strange red haired man. Why were those to boys staring at him? Two red haired boys who looked exactly the same and had the same kind of smile as Uncle Sirius had.  
  
"Who are you?" Said one of them.  
  
"Harry Potter" Harry said. Their mouths opened wide.  
  
"Are you really?" The other said, "Are you really Harry Potter?"  
  
"That's what mum and dad call me." Harry said.  
  
"Wow." The first one said. "Can we see your scar?" Harry looked at them uneasily. He was only five but he didn't like people staring at his scar at all.  
  
"I really don't want to" Harry said.  
  
"Oh come one" one of them said, Harry had become too confused to remember who was who.  
  
"Please? It would be so cool-"  
  
"Fred, George, stop annoying Harry." Said a large, slightly plump woman. She sounded stern but she looked so kind, a bit like Aunt Jenny's Grandma but English and not as old.  
  
"Oh but mum-" said Fred...or George.  
  
"No, go and play outside, Bill and Charlie are about to go and play some quidditch, go and watch them." Said the lady. Fred and George left the room, heads quite close together. Harry sat on the chair watching silently.  
  
"I swear-" the lady said. "Are you alright dear?" She asked Harry. Harry nodded.  
  
"I'm hungry. Where's mum and dad?" Harry asked.  
  
"Your mum and dad are on their way. Do you want a sandwich to eat?" She asked with a smile. Harry smiled slightly.  
  
"Yes please." Harry said.  
  
"You're so polite, wait here for a moment and I'll go and make you your sandwich." She said, "Would you like to play with something?" Harry shrugged. "Ron!" She called. Another red haired boy came running into the room, he was followed by an even younger girl with hair that was brighter then Emma's hair and it was straight.  
  
"Mum" The boy said.  
  
"Mum" The girl copied.  
  
"Ron, Ginny, this is Harry Potter-" The boy and girl both looked at each other in amazement. "Play with him until his parents come." The lady said. The boy and girl nodded. The lady left the sitting room leaving Harry with more red haired children.  
  
"Hi." Harry said. "I'm Harry."  
  
"Ron, and this is my sister Ginny." Ron said. "Do you want to play with us. We were playing it."  
  
"I told you Harry Potter was cute" Ginny whispered to Ron. "I saw picture. Mummy said he cute."  
  
"Ginny!" Ron said harshly. He turned back to Harry.  
  
"Ok. Um...where will we play?" Harry said.  
  
"In the Garden." Ron said. "Come on." Harry slid off the chair and followed Ron and Ginny through the house into the garden.  
  
"MUM!!" One of the twin boys shouted  
  
"THERE'S A STRANGE MAN HERE!!" The other one shouted. The lady that was making Harry's sandwich rushed out. Harry, Ron and Ginny went to the gate and had a look out.  
  
"Dad!" Harry said happily. James looked at him relieved and ran to the gate. He opened it and picked up Harry, obviously very relieved.  
  
"Harry!" James said. Harry hugged him tightly. "Don't ever wonder off again ok! Never go anywhere with a stranger, how many times have your mum and I told you that!" Harry just seemed to ignore him.  
  
"Dad, that's Ron and Ginny and the nice lady who is making me sandwiches." Harry said pointing at each one.  
  
"It's rude to point." James said lowering Harry's hand. "Thank you so much." James said to the lady.  
  
"It was no problem, Molly Weasley." The lady said, extending a hand. James took it and shook it.  
  
"James Potter. Where was he?"  
  
"Arthur found him in the Malfoy house during a raid. Apparently he had been locked in a bare room. Merlin knows what they were planning to do with him." Molly said.  
  
"Again, thank you so much. I'll have the Auror department look into it." James said. He looked around the garden. There were four boys playing over in the corner and Ron and Ginny there with them. "Are these all your kids?" James asked slightly amazed. Molly smiled and nodded.  
  
"Yes, this is Ron and Ginny. The two twins over there are Fred and George. The tallest boy is Bill and the other one is Charlie. There's also Percy but he's inside reading."  
  
"Wow." James said. He started out of his amazement, "Well, we'd better get going before my wife decides to divorce me." James said. Molly nodded.  
  
"Ok, well Harry was lovely to have, he can come and visit any time he wants." Molly said. James smiled,  
  
"Likewise, we have enough kids running around the house anyway, a few more can't hurt."  
  
"Oh, How many children-"  
  
"Only two but my friends often bring their kids round." James said with a smirk. Molly laughed gently and handed Harry a small paper bag.  
  
"Here's your sandwiches dear." Molly said. Harry took the bag and immediately looked into it.  
  
"Oo, ham sandwich." Harry said putting his arm into the bag.

* * *

**A/N:-Ok, I've jsut spent 4 hours drawing and I'm tired. I started drawing a red head wearing a pair of sunglasses and a brown leather jacket then while discusing something with some friends we decided that it was Emma Potter when she's 17. she looks quite cool :D Anyway, hope you liked this chapter. I got so many reviews for the last chapter that i HAD to update. I felt all emotional when I read all your reviews, you're all so nice. I feel quite overwhelmed! I'm going away for the weekend tomorrow/today (it's 2.15 am) so I probs wont update until SUnday. Hopefully Chapter 3 should be finished by then. Till laterz!**


	3. Missing the Point

**Missing the point**  
  
"Honey, I'm home!" James shouted.  
  
"-ook for da bear nesity, simple bear nesity-" sang Emma as she walked from one room to the other. James shook his head as he heard her. Lily came down the stairs.  
  
"Where have you-" She stopped when she saw Harry, "Oh Harry. Are you ok?" She rushed to James and pulled Harry from his arms.  
  
"Hey." James said, "No congratulations or anything for finding him?" James asked, rather annoyed. Lily looked at him and slapped the back of his head.  
  
"That was congratulations for losing him! That's the last time I let you take any of the children anywhere without me!" Lily said. She turned back to Harry. "Are you ok? You weren't hurt?"  
  
"Ron's mum gave me food." Harry said with a grin. He held up the empty paper bag.  
  
"Who's Ron?"  
  
"My new friend, and Ginny." Harry said. Lily turned to James for an explanation  
  
"The man who found Harry for me, Arthur Weasley took Harry back to his house. Ron and Ginny are two of their many many children." James said. Lily nodded and the walked out of the room with Harry. James was about to say something but gave up.  
  
"I'm going to work." He shouted.  
  
"Good!" Lily said back. James was about to shout a retort but decided that probably wouldn't be the wisest thing to do. He picked his auror cloak up from the chair and apparated to the ministry.

* * *

"If you pick paw paw, or pwickely pear, and you pick waw paw-" Emma sang as Harry sat in the living room.  
  
"Shut up." Harry said. Emma grinned, she loved to annoy Harry sometimes. She sat next to Harry  
  
"Where you went?" Emma asked.  
  
"To Ron's house" Harry said.  
  
"All night?" Emma asked.  
  
"I went to a strange man's house. He put me in a big dark scary room." Harry glanced around. "He said he wanted to kill me." Emma's mouth dropped open.  
  
"But I not want you dead!" Emma said. She suddenly hugged Harry, knocking them both off the sofa.  
  
"AH!" Harry shouted as he hit the floor. "Emma!" Emma sat on Harry's back as he tried to stand up.  
  
"Piggy back." Emma said.  
  
"No," Harry said. Emma put her arms around Harry.  
  
"Please" She said in a very very childish voice. Harry rolled over, causing Emma to fall off.  
  
"You not nice to me. I telling mummy" Emma said with a pout.  
  
"Tell mum" Harry said. Emma looked at Harry slightly annoyed and ran out of the room. Harry simply shrugged and headed towards his own room. He was bored. His adventure had been fun but he wanted to do something else now. He turned in the middle of the hall and headed to the kitchen. His mum was making lunch and Harry ignored her as she asked where he was going. He just about managed to open the back door and went out into the garden. He started searching for the hole he'd filled up with jelly earlier. He found it and looked in it. Someone had been in there! Harry shrugged and went to get his spade to dig another hole. He found it behind the shed and was about to stick it in the ground when a large black dog ran around the side of the house and stood in front of Harry. Harry grinned and pointed at the floor.  
  
"Dig Padfoot!" Harry said. The dog gave a bark and began digging, spraying Harry with dirt as he did so. Harry laughed and covered his face as Padfoot dug into the ground. Padfoot gave a bark and then stopped. Harry looked at Padfoot and looked into the hole.  
  
"Wow!" He gasped. Padfoot turned into Sirius and reached into the hole. He put his hand around the top of a small box. He caught the handle and pulled it up. Harry watched him carefully.  
  
"We found some treasure Harry." Sirius said. Harry looked at Sirius curiously.  
  
"What is it?" He asked.  
  
"I don't know" Sirius said. Harry scowled. Sirius put the small chest on the grass next to the hole and got his wand out.  
  
"What doing?" Emma asked from the door.  
  
"Grown up stuff" Harry said. Emma came out anyway and crouched next to Sirius.  
  
"Oh, what that?" Emma asked.  
  
"It's a chest." Sirius said. "Here let me open it." He pointed his wand at it. "Alohamora" The lock glowed slightly and the lock clicked open. He opened it cautiously. The lid moved smoothly. Sirius scowled slightly and looked into the box. Emma and Harry peered into it as well.  
  
"Oh, picures" Emma said reaching into the box. Sirius didn't stop her and she picked up the pictures. They were photos. "It me." She said with a smile as she pointed at a Muggle photo of a young girl with red hair and green eyes. She looked a lot like Emma but Sirius knew it wasn't. Emma put the photo down.  
  
"It's me!" Harry said wide eyed. This was a moving wizard photo of a scruffy boy with scruffy black hair and hazel eyes. He was being hugged by a girl with long black straight hair who also had hazel eyes. Sirius bit his lip slightly. That was Eleanor Potter James' sister.  
  
"No that's your dad." Sirius said, "And his sister Eleanor."  
  
"We don't know Eleanor." Harry said.  
  
"She died when your dad was at school." Sirius said. Harry looked at Emma, who was poking a photo of Lily and James in their seventh year. Why was there a box with their photos here? Oh wait, Sirius remembered now. It was a stupid thing they'd all decided to do when Lily and James had first moved here. Which meant there should be baby photos of him as well.  
  
"Hey Lily!" Sirius shouted. Lily appeared in the doorway. "Look what we've found!" Sirius shouted.  
  
"Harry, will you stop digging holes!" Lily said as she walked over and saw the big hole in the ground. "Oh, what's that?"  
  
"Picures" Emma said. Lily sat down next to them and put Emma on her legs. Emma showed Lily a photo of a young Chinese girl who was laughing into the camera. She was only about seven but she still looked clever.  
  
"You know, you're the odd one out Lily." Sirius said, looking at Lily's child photo. "Your photo doesn't move." He said moving it around in circles.  
  
"Well moving it around like that isn't going to help!" Lily said, rather amused. Emma laughed.  
  
"Where Rhia?" Emma asked.  
  
"At her grandmothers." Sirius answered as he picked up another photo.  
  
"Where April?" Emma asked.  
  
"Work."  
  
"Bo?"  
  
"Don't know."  
  
"Where-" Lily put a hand gently over Emma's mouth.  
  
"That's enough." Lily said with a slight laugh. Emma gave her mum an innocent look.  
  
"Oh look!" Harry said, "Dad's playing quidditch!" He said looking at a picture

* * *

"I can't believe you lost Harry Potter" said a man with thick black hair. He had dark, seep set eyes and his brow came forwards like a sort of ridge that covered his eyes. He had a permanent sneer on his face that made him look somewhat unfriendly. He stared at Lucius Malfoy like he'd kill him at the nearest chance he'd get.  
  
"I still don't understand why I have to take orders from you. The dark lord is gone."  
  
"And I'm his second, now how could you let Harry Potter get away!" The man said.  
  
"I wasn't expecting the Muggle loving fool to come for a raid. How was I supposed to know that my house had been chosen for a raid?" Lucius Malfoy spat at the man.  
  
"You are their top suspect for everything Malfoy, you should be more alert."  
  
"Yes but I'm also the one who gives most of their funds!" Lucius snapped. "I would rather get on with my life and wait until the Dark Lord comes back. I don't know why we're trying to kill Harry Potter. If the Dark Lord couldn't do it then no one can"  
  
"We're killing Harry Potter so the Dark Lord can come back to power." The man said.  
  
"And how do you know that he will. The Potters all said they saw the Dark Lord get killed. He may never come back to power at all." Lucius said. He pulled his robes around him tighter.  
  
"He will come back and by killing Harry Potter we will enable his return to be more swift, now are you going to help or not? If you do not want to help then I will have to take some drastic action against you." The man said pulling out his wand and slowly pointing it at Lucius. Lucius straightened and looked at the wand. He looked down his nose at the wand. He crinkled his nose in distaste and looked at the man.  
  
"Fine. What do you want me to do? After last Harry Potter is going to be impossible to get to." Lucius said.  
  
"I want you to get to those who protect Harry." The Man said.  
  
"Fine Travers but I hope it's worth it. Do you know how many times people have tried to kill the Potters?" Lucius said.  
  
"Yes I do, that's why I'm trusting you Lucius, you're cleverer then most people" Travers said. He apparated away with a pistol like crack. Lucius took a sharp breath before turning and heading towards Malfoy manor. He pulled his cloak about him, it was summer and it was incredibly hot but Lucius didn't notice.

* * *

April leant against the door looking into the ward. The beds there should have been covered but they weren't. The nurse was going down giving each of the patients their medication. April looked at two particular beds. She heaved a sigh as she watched a young boy, with a round face and brown hair, sitting on a bed talking to a woman with a similar round face and whispy greying hair. The boy was just talking to the woman and a man in the bed next to her and he wasn't getting a reply back. April could see that he was getting rather distraught.  
  
"Hey, April. How's it going?" James asked, as he approached from behind.  
  
"It's unfair, you know." April said, not taking her eyes off the boy.  
  
"What is?" James asked. He looked at the boy. "Oh, the Longbottoms. Yeah. But there's a reason we have to look after them"  
  
"Do you think that maybe, if they, you know, did die it wouldn't be so bad for Neville?" April asked, looking at James.  
  
"Maybe but we're under orders to protect them. It's why we became Aurors in the first place" James said. April sighed.  
  
"I know but if I have to watch Neville like that I think I might adopt him." April said. "So that he can have some proper parents."  
  
"I'm sure he's alright, besides, I thought you were getting stressed about having another child?" James said. They sat on some chairs just inside the ward. April sighed again. Her anger from earlier that day and the previous day had evaporated, yes she hated Sirius for getting her pregnant again but was it really his fault? Not completely, she had to take some of the blame as well.  
  
"Yeah I was but I can't stop it now. I'm just going to have to go through the morning sickness again, and the tiredness, and the back ache, and the stiffness" April sighed.  
  
"And at the end of that, you get a shiny new baby" James said with a grin. April looked at him. "Ok, maybe not shiny, but a new one anyway." James said. April smiled.  
  
"Yeah I know. I'm actually sort of looking forwards to having this kid but at the same time I'm scared"  
  
"You were scared with Rhia and Orion. I mean, you were half starved, tortured and nearly raped when you had Rhia and she's still all healthy and perfect" James said. April frowned.  
  
"How do you know about the Rape thing?" She asked, "I haven't told anyone-"  
  
"But Jenny, Jenny told me. Lily knows as well." James said. "We didn't want to cause you any more distress, don't worry, Sirius doesn't know." April nodded hesitantly. She looked back at Neville and his parents. Normally she wouldn't feel so affected by this but because of the new hormones going through her she felt a bit too emotional.  
  
"Anyway, I came to say it's my shift now. You can go. Your shift is tomorrow night, all night so rest up." James said. He paused for a few moments. "And please take Sirius back. I'm a bit uneasy about what he might be up to in my house." April chuckled.  
  
"Lily and Sirius aren't going to do anything." April said.  
  
"It's not Lily I'm worried about. I'm worried about his influence on the children." James said. April rolled her eyes and got up.  
  
"Good night James." April said "Buy Neville something from me." James nodded and April left the ward. She pulled her auror robes off and fanned herself with her hands. It was too hot to wear them but she had to when she was working. She was now officially off work. April started counting the days until she would get Maternity leave. For an Auror Maternity leave was incredibly long. They normally gave it after two weeks of being pregnant until three months after you gave birth. April went into the lobby of St. Mungos. It took a few moments for April to realised she was going the wrong way. She headed for the entrance and stepped out into the hot dark street. She went into an alleyway and glanced around. No Muggles, good. April apparated into a room that was cooler then the street. She was facing a wireless radio. She turned to see her mum sitting on the sofa with Orion fast asleep on her lap. April's mum smiled at her.  
  
"Back from work?"  
  
"Yep." April said. "Where's Rhia?"  
  
"In your old bedroom, reading." April's mum said. April frowned.  
  
"Rhia can't read yet."  
  
"I know. She's making it up." April's mum said. April smiled, she bent over and picked up Orion. Orion gave a sleepy moan before putting his arms around April's neck and cuddling up against her  
  
"I don't understand why you don't get Sirius to look after Rhia and Orion." April's mum said.  
  
"Because I don't trust him with the kids." April said.  
  
"Then why did you marry the man?" April's mum asked with a serious expression.  
  
"Well since he dropped Rhia when she was born I just kind of felt he wasn't really supposed to be a dad." April's mum put a hand on April's back.  
  
"You weren't meant to be a mum but you're doing great." She said with a smile. "As much as I love Rhia and Orion being around, maybe you should let Sirius have a chance."  
  
"I think I might have to. I'm pregnant again." April said to her mum. Her mum smiled and gave April a kiss on the cheek.  
  
"Congratulations." Her mum said. "At least one of my daughters is giving me grandchildren." April gave her mum a long look. "You're only enjoying yourself April. Having children is a natural thing" April looked like she was going to be sick.  
  
"Please never say that again." April said.  
  
"How do you think you were bor-" April got up and left the room. Her mum started laughing.  
  
"Rhia, get yourself down here, we're going home." April called up the stairs. Surprisingly Orion stayed asleep against her shoulder. Rhia came down the landing and sat down on the top step. She pushed herself off and bounced all the way down the steps. She made a small noise every time she hit a step.  
  
"Rhia" April said tiredly. Rhia grinned at April.  
  
"Sorry." Rhia mumbled.  
  
"Go and get your things, we're going home." April said. Rhia nodded and ran into the living room. April's mum joined her in the hall.  
  
"Will you be ok?" She asked. April nodded.  
  
"I will be." April said with a sigh. April's mum kissed April's forehead.  
  
"Becky is coming back to England for a few days next week, we're hoping that maybe you'd be up for a dinner?"  
  
"Do you want me to bring the kids?" April asked.  
  
"Bring the whole family." April's mum said. "She's bringing her son." April looked at her mum surprised.  
  
"But Becky didn't get pregnant."  
  
"She adopted." She said with a smile.  
  
"Ready mum" Rhia said, pulling on a small back pack with a few of her things in it.  
  
"Ok, bye Rhia" April's mum said.  
  
"Bye nana" Rhia said. April led Rhia outside and to a phone booth in the street. She picked up a coin. Rhia held it tightly and suddenly everything turned into a blur. There was a tugging sensation at April's navel and she couldn't move. She could hear Rhia going:  
  
"WEEEEEEE!!" As they sped through the country via portkey. They suddenly landed somewhere outside their house. Rhia let go of the coin and ran up to their front door. April placed the coin under a rock and followed Rhia tiredly.  
  
"Come on." April said opening the door. "Go straight to bed."  
  
"Ok." Rhia said. She clambered up the stairs and disappeared into a room and closed the door. On the door was painted a large sign saying RHIA. April went to another room and put Orion into the bed and tucked him in. He let out a small contented moan. April went downstairs and sat on the sofa. She missed Sirius, why did she kick him out again? She leant over to the small table by the sofa and picked up the phone. She didn't know why she had a phone but it came with the house. She dialled Lily's number and let the phone ring. The phone was picked up.  
  
"House of War and Love" Came Sirius voice over the phone.  
  
"Sirius, shut up." April said.  
  
"Oh, um April, hi." He said uncertainly.  
  
"Can you come home?" April asked him.  
  
"Oh, yeah, there's a problem with that" Sirius said. April sat up straighter  
  
"What problem?" April asked.  
  
"My wife doesn't like me." Sirius said, "So at the moment I'm shacked up with my best friend's wife"  
  
"Sirius please come home." April said.  
  
"Alright. Be there in a minute" Sirius said. He put the phone down. Before April could even put the phone down Sirius had apparated in front of her.  
  
"Hey." April said with a smile. Sirius gave her an uneasy smile. April stood up and put her arms around him and put her lips against his. Sirius returned the kiss for a few moments before pulling away.  
  
"What's with the sudden change of feeling towards me?" He asked with a smile. April shrugged.  
  
"I don't know." April said, "I suppose work just got to me today." Sirius gave April a slightly sympathetic look and led her to the sofa. April leant against him as she told him about what she'd been up to. Sirius sighed and pulled her closer.  
  
"Well, isn't that why you became an auror in the first place?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Will people stop saying that to me!" April asked. Sirius laughed lightly. April grinned and leant up and gave him another kiss.

* * *

James sat on the chair watching the beds. They were all hidden behind the hangings that divided the beds. He still wasn't entirely sure why he had to guard the Longbottoms. The threat to kill them had gone when the Lestranges had been put into Azkaban. James shivered as he thought about that place. He had to go next week to do his monthly check. All the Aurors had to go around Azkaban for a few hours every month, the Head auror didn't seem to trust the Dementors. Neither did James, come to think of it. They had worked for Voldemort during the war and had switched sides a bit too grudgingly. That meant he had to see Wormtail again. James felt an anger and hatred build up as he thought of the pathetic man he used to call his friend.  
  
There was a sudden moan from one of the beds making James start. James stood up and went to the source of the noise. He pushed the curtains aside and glanced in. There was the patient on the bed, probably just a nightmare. James closed the curtain and was about to return to his seat when he heard a creaking, like a creaking of a door. He got his wand out and held it tightly. He turned slowly and looked at the door. There wasn't anyone there. He took another step towards his chair when he heard the noise again. He turned and pointed his wand at the door.  
  
"Reducto!" He said. The door shattered and there, behind it was a figure in a hooded cloak. "Expelliarmus"  
  
"Protego." James jumped to the side and pointed his wand at the Death Eater.  
  
"Confundus"  
  
"Stupefy"  
  
"Protego" James said. The spell rebounded off James' shield and hit the Death Eater. James stood up and started for the Death Eater when he felt something warp tightly around him. He looked down and saw that there were some magical ropes being tied around him.  
  
"Shit." James muttered. He struggled against the ropes and tried to get free but they just seemed to get tighter.  
  
"Silenco" Someone said behind him. James couldn't speak. His voice had completely gone. He was turned around and found himself looking at a Death Eater.  
  
"Ah, Potter, we meet again." The Death Eater said. James' eye brows went up slightly. He tried struggling again but the ropes got tighter, so tight they were crushing his chest and he was finding it difficult to breathe. He dropped his wand as his hands went slightly slack. "Don't worry, we'll take good care of your family" The Death Eater said. "Stupefy!"

* * *

Lily was checking her patients in the Johansan Poxley ward in the Hexes department. There had been a patient who had come in who looked like he'd been on the receiving end of about a thousand hexes, the challenge now was figuring out which ones.  
  
"Mr. Kinery, I'll be back in a moment. I just need to file this and I'll be back with the counter spells." Lily said with a smile.  
  
"Take all the time you want darling," The man said. Lily forced a polite smile then turned around and rolled her eyes. It was one thing being a healer, the St. Mungos medi-witch and Healer uniforms was enough to provoke unwanted attention, but when you were as pretty as Lily it was just a cause to be bombarded by it. Lily had just coped with four years of training with those kind of comments. She left the ward and went to a small desk just outside the ward where some nurses were busy filing and logging Patient's information.  
  
"Good morning Janice." Lily said coming up to the desk. A witch with wispy brown hair and a thin slightly chubby face gave Lily a smile.  
  
"Good morning Lily, who have you got today?" She asked.  
  
"Oh, a smooth playing hex victim." Lily said. Janice and the other nurse both chuckled slightly.  
  
"Ever the charmer" said the other witch. This witch had dark brown hair that fell to her shoulders, it was well cared for and her face was a similar shape as Lily's. She was quite young, she'd probably just come out of training. Lily raised her eyebrows.  
  
"Yes, well, I need you to process Mr. Kinery's information and give him the dreamless sleep potion. He's been hit by a nightmare hex which could cause some unwanted side effects." Lily said.  
  
"Will do that." Janice said.  
  
"Hey hot stuff." Came a voice followed by a wolf whistle. Lily turned around to see two young cocky looking wizards grinning at her. Lily rolled her eyes and turned back to Janice and the other nurse.  
  
"And then I would like you to get some cooling potion. My godson is coming down with a heat rash." Lily said.  
  
"Sure. Ok." Said Janice, taking everything down. Lily ran a hand through her hair and turned around. The wizards were still there. Lily rolled her eyes and headed towards the stairs. She was supposed to be meeting April. April had sent her an owl that morning asking to meet her by the Janis Thickley ward. Maybe Lily could visit James in there if April was a bit late. She'd seen him in there on the way into work that morning. Unfortunately April was there on time. Damn those Aurors!  
  
"Hi Lily." April said. Lily gave April a smile then glanced in the Janis Thickley ward to se if James was there. He was standing by a bed and smiled when he saw Lily.  
  
"Come on." April said, pulling Lily through the doors and into the stairway.  
  
"What did you want to meet about?" Lily asked.  
  
"It's Sirius." April said as they headed up the stairs.  
  
"What about him? I thought you two made up." Lily said.  
  
"We did but I feel like showing him what it's like to be me" April said. Lily rolled her eyes.  
  
"Um, why are you wearing your Auror robes?" Lily asked as she saw a Male healer walk past and give them a look. April looked at Lily with a slight look of confusion.  
  
"Lunch break." She said. Lily nodded. "Anyway, I was wondering if you could do something for me." April said. Lily looked at April.  
  
"What is it? I'm not giving Sirius Dragon Pox." Lily said as she stopped. April giggled slightly.  
  
"I don't want him ill." April said.  
  
"What do you want then?" Lily asked. April pulled Lily closer and put her mouth to Lily's ear and whispered her plan. Lily covered her mouth with her hand to stop herself from laughing. When April moved away Lily looked at her.  
  
"You realise you won't be able to stop it until you've given birth right?" Lily asked. April nodded, "And he'll feel all the pains as well." April nodded "and he wont be able to give you any support when you give birth"  
  
"That's what you're there for" April said. Lily rolled her eyes. "Oh please Lily? It'll teach him not to get me pregnant again, please please please?" Lily looked at April. She knew what April was doing, April was searching her mind so she'd know the answer before Lily said it. April pulled Lily into a tight hug.  
  
"You owe me" Lily said. A middle aged wizard went past, behind April. April suddenly stiffened and looked behind her. "Yeah I know. Everyone in the hospital is a pervert." Lily said. April straightened the back of her robes.  
  
"I wish Sirius was here." She muttered. Lily grinned and shook her head.

* * *

**A/N:-This story might be a bit random coz i keep thinking of random little things but i will have a main storyline (which i hope you can identify soemtimes). Ok, I thought i had a LOT few reviews then i actually have. As to the thing regarding my picture, I'll try and get it up but i can't make n e promises, my server person is a bit wierd, i've been trying all day. And what else did i need to say....um.....I can't really remember but yeah. Next chapter will be up on sunday coz i'm going away for the weekend to do some windsurfing. Oh yeah, i remember what i was going to say. This is in reply to....draddog. Ginn said he was cute and then it was followed up with something like, "mummy said so" so she's just quoting her mum. Don't worry about it really. I was just having some fun. This story isn't going to be serious in the least. I'm just gonna have fun with it but i'll try and keep it as realistic as possible....i u can even do that with HArry Potter. Anyway, hope you enjoy...I'm expecting at least 1 comment about this chapter.**


	4. The Pregnancy Test

**A/N:- Ok, I'm putting the a/n here to give the cliffie at the end of the chapter a more effective..effect :s...anyway, this story is going well though i'll probably have just a few stories of HArry's childhood and stuff, obviously I'm going to have the birth of April's new kid, and Sirius going through Labour...you'll see. I'll be adding a story about how Orion gets into his new hobby when he's about 5 or 6 and then I'm going to add a cool story that my friend/co-author Kaylee came up to think of it she came up with most of the storylines in this story. Anyway, back to me. I know it's really far ahead to plan this but what do you guys think of continuing this sort of thing into Harry's 6th year. Like Lily and JAmes are alive in his 6th year and seventh year? I have a scene written out called Emma's rebellion and a scene involving Orion, Snape and a skateboard. hehe. **

**I would also like to say..I LOVE YOU ALL!! I have never received as many reviews per chapter in ANY of my other stories. I want to hug and/or kiss you all. You're all so nice to me.**

**2 more things then i'll shut my trap. Check out sweetest-sin980's story starting small, ending big. It's brilliant. And there's this website writing competition thing called Quill To Parchment. They've just posted this months writing challenge, check it out, it should be fun. You can get to it from my writer's page, there's a link there. toodles**

**

* * *

**

**The Pregnancy Test  
**  
"Sirius honey" April called around the house. She put down her bag and took off her robes.  
  
"Mummy" said Orion as he peered out of the living room. He looked as though he'd been painting. He had colours all over his face and stuff all over his clothes.  
  
"Hey Orion." April said as Orion tottered over to her and clamped himself around April's leg. April bent over and picked him up but Orion didn't let go. "Oh for crying out loud." April muttered. Rhia came out of the living room. She had lipstick in one hand and what looked like a powder puff in the other.  
  
"Orion!" Rhia said enticingly. Orion turned and shouted and April picked him up. Orion hugged April's neck. "Mummy!" Rhia said slightly annoyed  
  
"Rhia, what have I told you about using your brother as a doll?" April said sternly. Rhia looked at her even more annoyed.  
  
"Use Daddy." She said.  
  
"Very good." April said, "Now where is your dad?" Rhia pointed to the living room. Rhia looked at the bag and dropped the make up and went to the bag.  
  
"No, Rhia. That's not for you. Can you bring it to the living room?" Rhia nodded and started pulling it behind her. April went into the living room. Sirius was draped across the sofa fast asleep. His mouth was open and he was snoring gently. The floor was covered in April's make up. Her foundation was dripping off the coffee table, her mascara had been used to draw pictures on the wall. The sofa was smeared with lipstick. April took a sharp breath. She turned to Sirius. After looking at him it was obvious why Rhia had decided to use Orion as a doll. He was covered in make up, from the tips of his hair being dusted in eye shadow to his nails being very badly manicured.  
  
"Rhia, go and get the camera." April said. Rhia grinned and ran out of the room. April carefully placed Orion on the table and he leant forwards to get a better look at his daddy. Rhia came back with a camera placed in her hand. She handed it to April. April took it and put it near her face and took a few photos of Sirius sleeping. Orion was laughing and Rhia giggled slightly.  
  
"Ok, lets tidy this place up." April said tensely. She couldn't believe Sirius had let their children play with her make up. Thank Merlin it wasn't hers. April thought, well not all of it. Most of it was borrowed from Lily and Jenny. They weren't going to be happy at all. "Scougify" April said waving her wand. The room tidied up immediately. April turned to Sirius and hit him. Sirius started.  
  
"Ah!" Sirius shouted sitting up and getting out his wand.  
  
"Wake up you idiot" April said. Sirius looked at April sleepy eyed.  
  
"What?" Sirius said, "Oh April."  
  
"I left you in charge of the kids and you let them destroy my make up collection!" Sirius looked at her confused. "And you fell asleep." Sirius' expression fell.  
  
"I'm really sorry." He said quickly.  
  
"Oh never mind." April said, "I have something for you." April turned and put her hand into the bag. Sirius stood up and gave Orion a quick smile. Orion grinned and looked at Rhia. Rhia was climbing on the table to look in the bag. April pulled out what looked like a shirt with a bump where the stomach would be.  
  
"What's that?" Sirius asked April uncertainly. April handed it to Sirius.  
  
"Put it on." She said innocently.  
  
"No." Sirius said, "Tell me what it is first." He said. April looked at Sirius tiredly.  
  
"I can always have Lily castrate you." Sirius went pale and hesitantly took the shirt thing. He looked at it before putting it on reluctantly. The moment it was on it seemed to stick to Sirius and the bump shrunk. He stiffened.  
  
"What the-"  
  
"That Sirius is a Pregnancy bump." April said. "You are now going to feel what I feel for the next nine months, see if you like what I go through every time you get me pregnant!"  
  
"WHAT!" Sirius asked. "Get it off!" Rhia and Orion laughed as Sirius tried to get it off.  
  
"You can't get it off Sirius. It's linked to me. You will be able to take it off when the baby is born" April said. Sirius looked at April panic stricken  
  
"Men aren't supposed to be pregnant, April please, I won't get you pregnant again."  
  
"Why are you so scared?" April asked.  
  
"Because I've seen you and Lily when you're pregnant, it doesn't look fun." Sirius said. "I don't want to go through Labour!" He said sitting on the sofa pretending to cry. Rhia and Orion burst out laughing. Rhia nearly fell off the table. April sat down next to Sirius and patted his back  
  
"It's not that bad. You get to eat about three times as much as usual." April said. Sirius perked up.  
  
"Really?" Sirius asked. April slapped the back of his head.  
  
"You are so insensitive" April snapped.

* * *

"Hi Sirius." Lily said happily that evening as she walked past Sirius in the street on the way back from the local corner shop.  
  
"Hi" Sirius muttered.  
  
"How's the baby?" Lily asked cheekily. Sirius stopped and looked at her.  
  
"You know about it?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Of course. I got the pregnancy shirt for April." Lily said.  
  
"Uncle Sirius is pregnant?" Harry asked uncertainly. Harry knew that women got pregnant and men didn't. He also knew that it wasn't fun because he remembered his mum and Aunt April going through pregnancy.  
  
"Yes. Uncle Sirius annoyed Aunt April and now he has to pay." Lily said to Harry. Harry grinned.  
  
"It's not funny" Sirius muttered. "I've been feeling tired all day." Lily smirked.  
  
"Oh, I love the person who invented that invention" Lily said shaking her head. "Where are you going anyway?"  
  
"I'm hungry and April won't feed me" Sirius said pouting.  
  
"Oh, poor baby" Lily said with a smirk, "Come on, I'll feed you something"  
  
"Thank you Lily." Sirius said. Lily shook her head as she laughed and let Harry run ahead to the house.  
  
"Also, I guess April's at work?"  
  
"Yeah, she is. How did you know?" Sirius asked.  
  
"James came back." Lily said.  
  
"You and James alright now? I mean this morning you two weren't sleeping in the same bed." Sirius said.  
  
"We're alright now I suppose" Lily said with a frown. "This may seem weird but he seems slightly different"  
  
"How different?" Sirius asked  
  
"A bit colder" Lily said. "Well, when I saw him when he got back he got a bit enthusiastic to see me." She said with a slight smirk. Sirius looked at her with a suggestive look.  
  
"Well, lets go talk to my old friend." Sirius said clapping his hands. They went to the house and Lily opened the door. Harry had gone through the back door.  
  
"What's for dinner then?" Sirius asked as he wondered through the house.  
  
"Pasta Bake." Lily said. Sirius grinned.  
  
"Is that all you know how to make?" He asked.  
  
"I know how to make other things but it's easiest to make and it's like the only thing you'll eat."  
  
"You know me better then my own wife knows me." Sirius said. Lily shook her head in disbelief. Sirius walked into the living room where James was frowning at the TV. Emma was sitting on his lap playing with the remote control.  
  
"Hey Jamie." Sirius said. James didn't look at him. "ok, I know you hate that name but do you really have to ignore me"  
  
"Huh?" James said turning around and looking at Sirius. "Sorry um..."  
  
"Sirius" Sirius said slowly.  
  
"Oh yeah, Sirius." James smiled.  
  
"What's with the-" James pointed at his own face. Sirius frowned and touched his face. He quickly summoned a mirror and looked at himself.  
  
"Oh Merlin!" Sirius said. April hadn't told him he had all that make up stuff on his face! Sirius pointed his wand at himself and cleaned himself up. "Oh, April is going to die."  
  
"Ok." James said with an amused frown.  
  
"She's already got me pregnant" Sirius said sitting next to James. James scowled.  
  
"How could she get you pregnant?" James asked. "Men can't get pregnant."  
  
"She tricked me into putting on this thing that makes me feel every single thing she feels while she's pregnant...including the bump!" Sirius said. James snorted slightly.  
  
"You're going to have a bump!" James laughed. Sirius didn't look at all amused  
  
"It's not funny!"  
  
"What did you do to deserve that!" James asked.  
  
"What has April been complaining about all day yesterday?" Sirius asked James. Sirius gave James a side glance. James looked at him confused.  
  
"What has she been complaining about?"  
  
"Oh never mind." Sirius said, "I'm going to get a drink, you want one?"  
  
"No I have my own drink, thanks." James said. Sirius looked at James slightly surprised then got up to go to the kitchen where Lily was having an argument with the kettle.  
  
"Oh work you stupid thing!" Lily nearly shouted at it. The kettle let off some steam then switched off. "ARGH!" Lily shouted.  
  
"Having fun?" Sirius smirked.  
  
"Shut up Pregnant man." Lily snapped at him.  
  
"That was low." Sirius said with a pout.  
  
"I don't care. It seems like we're having Pizza today." Sirius grinned.  
  
"YAY!!" He said throwing his hands in the air like a child. He looked at Lily who was giving him the strangest look. He lowered his hands quickly. "I'm sorry. I won't do that again" He said hanging his head. Lily smiled and shook her head. She headed for the phone and ruffled Sirius' hair on the way past him.  
  
"You'll grow up one day Sirius." She said. Sirius grinned.  
  
"Oh by the way, I think you're right. James didn't know about April being annoyed with me and he didn't react the way I thought he would when I told him about me being pregnant." Sirius said. Lily stopped at that comment.  
  
"There is something very wrong with you saying that." Lily said. Sirius shrugged. "Anyway, it's not just me then?" Lily asked in a hushed voice, "James is different isn't he?" Sirius nodded.  
  
"I think he is." Sirius said in a hushed voice.  
  
"What are you whispering about?" James asked from the door way. He was holding Emma in a way that Lily had never seen before. She didn't think Sirius noticed but being married to him, Lily knew all of James' little habits.  
  
"Oh, nothing" Lily said. "We're having pizza tonight for dinner"  
  
"Oh brilliant." James said with a smile.  
  
"Do you have any preferences?" Lily asked sweetly.  
  
"Um, get me...pepperoni." James said.  
  
"Alright, could you run a bath for Harry please?" Lily said. James nodded and put Emma down and headed upstairs. As soon as the door was closed Lily turned and picked up a piece of parchment and a quill.  
  
"That's it." Lily said. "I'm sending the kids to Jenny's" Lily said.  
  
"What? Why?" Sirius asked.  
  
"That's not James, or it is and there's something wrong with him." Lily said.  
  
"How do you know?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Several reasons. You said that he didn't know a thing about April's pregnancy, April told me she's done nothing but complain about it to James. He was holding Emma differently and James hates Pepperoni pizza. In fact, I think he's allergic to the meat on it!" Lily said. Sirius looked at her slightly surprised  
  
"I don't even think April knows that much about me. You pay a lot of attention to James don't you?"  
  
"He's my husband, Sirius." Lily said. "I know these little things about him and unlike you and April we have a love-love relationship, not a love-hate one" Lily wrote something quickly on the parchment and folded it up. "Give this to Sultan whil I order the pizza." Lily said handing the parchment to Sirius.  
  
"Okey dokey" Sirius said taking the letter and leaving the room to find the Potter owl, Sultan.

* * *

Remus had just left that evening with Harry clutching his new broom and Emma in Remus' arm. Jenny and Remus were more then happy to take Harry and Emma for a few days though they were curious as to why Lily wanted them to take the two children so desperately.  
  
"I'll tell you later" Lily had told Remus. Sirius had been at the house as well and didn't seem quite as anxious, actually he looked quite tired while he was stuffing his mouth with pizza. Lily saw Sirius off and then went into the living room to tidy up the boxes of pizza. She had been watching James all evening. He'd eaten the pepperoni pizza without anything happening. Usually James nearly choked on the pizza. It was the one thing he was scared of. If he came into contact with a boggart it would probably turn into a slice of pepperoni.  
  
"Where are the kids?" Asked James from the door. Lily started in surprised and dropped the boxes she had been holding.  
  
"Oh, They've gone to stay with their friends." Lily said. "They were begging me all day today." James nodded and looked at the pile of Pizza boxes. Lily watched him uncertainly. There was something about the say that James was behaving that she didn't like. James took a bottle from amongst his robes, another thing that Lily had noticed, and took a sip from it. Not only was he drinking his own drink but he was wearing robes. As the Potters and Blacks lived in a muggle neighbourhood they usually wore Muggle clothing.  
  
"Ok." James said. "You coming to bed soon?"  
  
"James, you're sleeping on the sofa remember?" Lily asked. He wasn't really but it was another test from Lily. James looked at Lily.  
  
"Why?" He asked.  
  
"We had a fight last night, don't you remember? That's why you took the night shift to look after the Longbottoms?" Lily asked. She had always made a convincing actor. In her seventh year she had made Sirius believe that she and April were lesbian lovers. James frowned.  
  
"What did we fight over?" James asked.  
  
"I wanted a divorce." Lily said, "You found out about my affair with Sirius." James nodded.  
  
"Right" He said slowly. "Well I think that maybe you should sleep on the sofa."  
  
"That's not what you said yesterday." Lily said coolly. This was definitely James. It was an impostor.  
  
"I don't care what I said yesterday-" James stopped. Lily had her wand out.  
  
"Who the hell are you?" Lily asked.  
  
"Your husband."  
  
"No you're not." Lily said. "You're an impostor. My husband is afraid of pepperoni pizza, my husband doesn't wear wizarding robes around the house and he wouldn't have believed that we wanted a divorce, who are you?" Lily asked. James reached for his wand. "Expelliarmus, accio wand" Lily said as the wand flew out of James' hand. James looked at her. Lily looked at the wand. She tucked it through a belt loop in her jeans. "This isn't even James' wand. Who are you?" The impostor James sneered at her.  
  
"Your husband is dead, like your children will be." He said. Lily tensed and looked at the impostor coldly.  
  
"Sit down" Lily said coldly. The impostor stood where he was firmly. "I SAID SIT DOWN!" She shouted at him. He looked at her then went to the sofa. "Now for the last time, who are you?" She asked him.  
  
"I'm not telling you." Lily got closer to him and put a hand in one of the pockets in his robes and pulled out the bottle that he kept drinking from while keeping her wand trained on the impostor the whole time. It was difficult for her but she was forcing herself to do it. When she was a few steps away she unscrewed the bottle and smelled the drink.  
  
"Polyjuice potion." She said, tipping the contents over the pizza. "Think of something more original next time." She said. The impostor glared at her. "And do more research on your victim's habits. I know James better then even he thinks." Lily said, "You thought you could pass off as James?"  
  
"Not really. I told my master I wouldn't be able to." The impostor said.  
  
"Your master?" Lily asked. The impostor's eyes glittered and Lily tensed. She took a step out of the way as someone came crashing through the window. Lily held her wand out tightly, her knuckles were going white. The intruder looked at the impostor then at Lily.  
  
"Expel-"  
  
"Silencio" The intruder said. Lily's voice cut out. "Now hand me the wand." He said. Lily flicked her wrist and used a whip like motion and the intruder shrank into a bunny for a few seconds. He turned back and laughed. Lily started panicking. Ok, this wasn't good.  
  
"Accio wand." Lily's wand was pulled from her hands as the impostor's wand ripped through the belt loop and flew to the intruder. "Av-" Lily closed her eyes and used all her will power to apparate. She appeared in April's house. It was still dark, meaning Sirius wasn't back yet. Lily sat on the sofa and put her head in her hands. She thought about what the impostor had said, was James dead? He couldn't be. She was like that for a few moments until the front door opened and she heard Sirius giving a sigh. Lily stood up and ran to the front door. Sirius jumped in surprise when he saw her.  
  
"Lily?" He asked. Lily pointed at her throat. "What?" Lily pointed at her throat then at Sirius wand. "Oh right, Finite Incantatum." He said.  
  
"Thank you!" Lily said hugging Sirius tightly. Sirius patted her back.  
  
"It's alright. What happened?" Sirius asked.  
  
"James, it's not him." Lily said, "It's an impostor, he's using Poly juice potion and then someone attacked me. He came flying through the window, they've got my wand." Lily said. Sirius looked at Lily seriously.  
  
"Take my wand, protect yourself." He said. "Go to April's parent's house"  
  
"What are you going to do?" Lily asked.  
  
"I'll get your wand back."  
  
"How?" To answer Lily's question Sirius turned into Padfoot and ran out through the door.

* * *

The large black dog crouched by the house and then jumped up to have a look through the window. He put his large black paws on the windowsill and peered inside. There were two men in the room. One man was James Potter, the other a man in a hooded cloak.  
  
"You idiot!" The man in the cloak said. "You keep failing."  
  
"Actually, it's Lucius that failed last time" James said. The hooded man turned to look at James.  
  
"Don't talk back at me." Padfoot looked around the room. As a dog his eyesight wasn't as good as when he was human but he could see that the hooded man had an extra wand...Lily's wand! Padfoot jumped down and walked around the house to the back door, he could open the back door as a dog. Padfoot jumped up and pulled the handle down. The door opened slowly and Padfoot went in as slowly as he could as quietly as he could. He smelt the air. He could smell Lily and James, he went into the hall and glanced into the living room. The James sitting on the sofa didn't smell like James. He smelt of someone completely different. Padfoot looked at the hooded man and then at his hand, it held onto Lily's wand tightly. He lifted the wand and tucked it into one of his pockets in his robes.  
  
"Now what are we going to do?" The hooded man said. "Where's Baby Potter?"  
  
"The girl or the-"  
  
"You know which one I mean. Where are the children?"  
  
"I don't know. That bitch sent them to one of their friend's houses. As April Black is working tonight they can't be round hers because the other Black was still here after the kids had gone."  
  
"Which can only mean they're at the Lupins-"  
  
"Or April Black's parents." James said.  
  
"Yes, or there-" Padfoot ran into the room and jumped onto the man's chest. He fell over backwards because of the weight and the shock of having this huge dog jump at him. Padfoot barked at him and ripped the man's robes with his claws.  
  
"Stupefy!" Shouted James. Padfoot moved out of the way at the last minute and the spell hit the man in the robe. Padfoot slid to a halt and looked at James. He hesitated slightly but then crouched on his haunches and growled. James flicked his wand again and a yellow jet of light shot at Padfoot. Padfoot ran forwards and jumped in time for the spell to miss him. He landed, front paws first, on the man's chest and knocked him backwards. James stumbled backwards into the sofa.  
  
He struggled with Padfoot but screamed as Padfoot clamped his jaws around the man's wrist. This was when it was a good thing that the Potter's house was a bit outside the main village of Godric's Hollow. The more the James impostor struggled the tighter Padfoot bit his arm until it gave a crack and the impostor screamed even more. Padfoot, satisfied that he'd pretty much disabled the impostor's wand hand went back to the intruder and rummaged through his robes before he found Lily's wand.  
  
Padfoot held it carefully in his jaw and was about to jump out of the window when he stopped. He looked back and went to the nearest wand lying on the floor and pressed his back paw on it with all his strength and jerked it to the side. The wand snapped and Padfoot gave a satisfied but muffled bark and jumped out through the window. He ran to his own house and hit his head against the door a bit too hard. When the door opened Padfoot was a bit unsteady on his feet. Lily helped the dog into the house and then closed the door. Padfoot changed quickly back into Sirius. He stumbled to the wall and leant against it.  
  
"Oh god, are you ok Sirius?" Lily asked worriedly  
  
"Yeah, just hit the door too hard" Sirius said with the wand still in his mouth. "Your wand" He said handing Lily her wand.  
  
"Oh thank you Sirius!" Lily said hugging him. "Where they still in the house?" Sirius nodded.  
  
"But I managed to break one of their arms and the other one is out unconscious. I'll go and get Kingsley or whoever is at the Auror HQ. You go and check on Harry and Emma." Sirius said. Lily looked at him sceptically but then nodded.  
  
"Alright" She said. "Good luck." She said, she handed Sirius his wand back.  
  
"See you soon." Sirius said grimly. Lily was about to go when she hesitated.  
  
"You didn't happen to find out where James is?" Lily asked with a frown. Sirius shook his head. Lily nodded and disapparated away. Sirius tucked his wand into his pocket and then apparated to the Ministry. He went straight to the Auror Headquarters. It took him a while and he ended up shouting at the Elevator to go faster but it didn't make any difference. As soon as the elevator opened on the appropriate floor Sirius ran out and down the corridor and into the Auror Head Quarters.  
  
"Kingsley!" Sirius shouted, knowing that April wasn't there and neither was James. Sirius and Kingsley had met several times before when Sirius used to come and visit April at work. He was a nice man and he seemed to appear from nowhere in front of Sirius.  
  
"What is it?" Kingsley asked.  
  
"There was an attack on Lily Potter. She's got Harry and Emma out but James is missing" Sirius said. Kingsley frowned and nodded.  
  
"How many people?"  
  
"Two, one taking polyjuice potion to look like James he's got a broken wrist and the other is unconscious, he looked like a Death Eater." Kingsley immediately went into action. He got the attention of about seven nearby aurors and rapidly gave a set of orders.  
  
"Karen." Kingsley said, getting a witch by the arm. She stopped and looked at Kingsley. "Go and swap watch with April. We need her on this. Tell her to get to the Potter house ASAP." The witch, Karen, nodded and rushed out. Kingsley turned to Sirius. "We'll take it from here." Sirius nodded and headed out of the Auror Headquarters reluctantly. He got to an area of the ministry he could apparate from and went to a house surrounded by trees. It was a nice looking house, like a country bungalow. Sirius walked up to the door and knocked on it. There was a noise inside and the door opened. A half Chinese looking boy opened the door.  
  
"Uncle Sirius." He said.  
  
"Bo, your parents?" Sirius said. Bo nodded and opened the door.  
  
"Uncle SIRIUS!" Emma shouted as she ran to Sirius and jumped into his arms. Sirius held her tightly and she gave him a quick kiss. Sirius smiled and went into the living room where he found Harry wrestling Remus. Sirius raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Moony?" Sirius asked. Remus tried to get to his feet with Harry hanging from his neck.  
  
"Sirius." Remus said.  
  
"What are you doing?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Oh, Harry was picking a fight. Then he stole the book I was reading."  
  
"AH!" Harry shouted as he couldn't hold onto Remus' neck any longer. He fell to his feet and stood next to Remus.  
  
"Right, and you're supposed to be the mature one." Sirius said. Remus shrugged. "Anyway, has Lily come by?" Remus shook his head.  
  
"Why, was she supposed to?" Remus asked. Sirius nodded. 


	5. Getting things right

**Getting things right**  
  
Lily slipped past Janice, who was still on duty and slipped behind the nurses' station in St. Mungos. She had an idea as to who might have taken James. Yes, her and James had fallen out but Lily hadn't really meant any of it. She just wanted him to have the cold shoulder for a little while. She didn't think that whatever she did was enough to distract James so much that he got caught, and by people who wanted to kill their son! Lily had an idea but if it turned out to be wrong then she'd get into a LOT of trouble. She wasn't really one for one to one combat, or for duelling. Lily liked the peace and the quiet. She preferred to stay out of duels if she could help it.  
  
Lily sat down and looked at the desk, there were several files on the desk that Lily recognised, apparently Mr. Kinery would be ok. Lily put her wand on one of the files.  
  
"Lucius Malfoy" She whispered. The file immediately changed from Mr. Kinery to Lucius Malfoy. Lily picked up a quill and a scrap of parchment and wrote down Lucius Malfoy's address. She folded it up and put it in the pocket of her jeans. She quickly changed the file back to Mr. Kinery and got up. She made for the stairs but dipped into a ward when she saw an auror she didn't recognise go into the Janis Thickley ward. She didn't know why she was hiding. She went to the door.  
  
"April, you're wanted at the Potters, apparently there's been an attack." Said the auror.  
  
"What?" April asked, "When? Are the Potters ok?"  
  
"That's not for me to disclose at this moment but you'll be updated at the house." The auror said, "I've been sent to cover your shift. They need you there."  
  
"Alright. Um, I've got everything. Thanks Karen." April came out of the ward and went through the doors to the stairs. Lily followed her and put a hand on her arm. April turned and got her wand out at the same time.  
  
"It's me." Lily said. April sighed with relief.  
  
"What happened? Karen said there was an attack." April said.  
  
"There was." Lily said, "Sort of" She added. "I need your help." Lily held onto April's arms. April looked into her eyes, they looked like they were searching for something, Lily could see vague images of the attack flick through her vision.  
  
"What-" April started to say, "We can't, you need a warrant." April finished.  
  
"You're an auror, get one." Lily said. "It's my fault this has happened."  
  
"No it's not Lily." April said, "James is-"  
  
"James was distracted because we had a slight argument before we left, we never argue April." Lily said anxiously. April frowned and seemed to be considering it.  
  
"Alright, but I could lose my auror status because of this." April said.  
  
"Oh then don't-"  
  
"Lily, I said I'd help and I will help." April said. Lily smiled and gave April a hug. April hugged her back, "Now lets go before they do something to James."

* * *

April and Lily crouched by a bush near Godric's Hollow.  
  
"Ok, just apparate in and get the invisibility cloak." April said to Lily.  
  
"Wouldn't it be better if you went, you're supposed to be there, make an appearance, get the cloak, put it on and come out again?" Lily asked. April looked at her.  
  
"Good idea. I'll see you in a bit." April said. She disappeared with a crack and then appeared again in Lily's living room. A Death Eater was sprawled unconscious on the floor while another one who looked like James was nursing his hand. April recognised the bite marks on his arm, Padfoot. April rolled her eyes and then turned to see Moody right behind her. Damn! April thought, Moody could see straight through invisibility cloaks.  
  
"Where have you been Marsden?" Moody growled  
  
"I haven't been a Marsden for three years" April said.  
  
"Oh yes, married that Black fellow." Moody muttered, he looked back at April, his new magical glass eye was whizzing round in circles in his eye socket. As April watched it she felt her stomach churning slightly. She shook her head and forced herself to look away.  
  
"Where were you?" He asked.  
  
"I went to check on Lily Potter, you know, see if she's alright" April said. She tried to avoid Moody's real eye as well. Last time she had looked into it she'd gotten a bit too curious and had searched his memories. She really didn't want to fall into that trap again. The only people who really knew how to block her were Sirius, Dumbledore and April's parents.  
  
"Apparently she's gone missing as well. I bet you anything that she's been kidnapped." Moody said.  
  
"You're such an optimist." April said with a pleasant smile.  
  
"None of your cheek Mars-Black." April smiled. "Anyway, Where is she? She's wanted for questioning."  
  
"I'm afraid she won't be coming out until she has her husband back. I would like to request for a group of four Aurors to go and find James Potter" April said. Moody looked at her.  
  
"You know where he is?" Moody asked.  
  
"No, but we can find out." April said. Moody stared at her with both eyes.  
  
"Don't do anything stupid" He said. He moved away. April called over the nearest Auror.  
  
"Nancy, go back to Headquarters and bring a vial of Veriteserum." April said. The auror nodded. April was quite pleased, both her and James were getting quite far up the Auror ranks when they were such a young age. Rank VIII to be exact. Of course, James had almost technically been an auror longer then April. James had all those years in hiding while April had Pregnancy leave. Their total years as Aurors were pretty much the same. April loved having so much command over everyone.  
  
"Kingsley, help me get this guy unmasked. Take that-" April stopped as the man who had looked like James suddenly changed. It was like watching Sirius turn into Padfoot. Every Auror had their wands out and were pointing them at the man. Once he'd finished changing he looked completely different to James. He had blonde hair, blue eyes and looked a bit chubbier then James. He looked at the aurors in fright as they watched him carefully.  
  
"Take him to Azkaban." April said with a smile. The Aurors moved forwards and picked him up roughly.  
  
"But my hand!" The man said.  
  
"It'll be seen to in Azkaban." Kingsley said. The man whimpered slightly. April was reminded vaguely of Wormtail when they'd dragged Wormtail to Azkaban. Of course, April didn't want to go near the Azkaban guards, for fear of what they'd do to Rhia while she was in the womb, but she had watched them drag him from the ministry.  
  
"Say hi to Wormtail for me" April muttered gravely as he passed. The man looked at her uncertainly before he was taken out of the house. April turned to face the still unconscious Death Eater on the floor.  
  
"Wormtail?" Kingsley asked.  
  
"Pettigrew." April muttered, "Stupid traitor." She kicked the Death Eater over and waved her wand. The Death Eater went to the wall and his hood was pulled back. This was the man who had been talking to Lucius Malfoy, though April didn't know that. She looked at Kingsley and Kingsley put a charm on the Death Eater so that he was tied to the wall and he couldn't get free. The Auror called Nancy tapped April on the shoulder and gave her the vial of Veriteserum. Nancy was quite sweet really, she'd only just come out of training. April crouched next to the Death Eater and woke him up.  
  
"Ennervate" April said. The Death Eater woke with a start.  
  
"You-"  
  
"Silencio" April said. The Death Eater settled for glaring at her. "Open your mouth." April said. He shook his head.  
  
"She said open your mouth, don't make us force you." Kingsley said. The Death Eater glanced at the vial of clear liquid in April's hand and kept his mouth firmly shut. April rolled her eyes and sighed. She got out her wand and forced the Death Eater's mouth open. Kingsley tilted his head back and April dropped three drops of Veriteserum on the Death Eater's tongue. The Death Eater gave them a look of disgust.  
  
"Who are you?" April asked.  
  
"My name is Ferdinand Travers." He said in a monotonous voice.  
  
"And what are you doing here?" Kingsley asked.  
  
"I came to see if my follower had killed Lily Potter or not." He said. "I told him to Kill Lily Potter so that we could kill Harry Potter. Once Harry Potter has been killed then we can kill James Potter and the Dark Lord will come out of hiding and regain his strength." Travers said, "Then he will reign again. But until we-"  
  
"Shut up." April said impatiently.  
  
"April." Kingsley said. April ignored him.  
  
"Where is James Potter?" April asked.  
  
"He is in a building on an island in the north of Scotland. The Orkney islands. No one can get to him and he is guarded by a Welsh Green"  
  
"Dragon." April muttered to Kingsley.  
  
"I know, I'm not stupid." Kingsley said.  
  
"How do we get past the Dragon, and why is he guarded by a stupid Dragon?" April asked.  
  
"He is guarded by a dragon because we knew that someone would try to get to him so we needed a powerful deterrent and guard. I do not know how you get past the dragon,"  
  
"How do you get past the dragon?" April said impatiently, emphasising the fact it was a personal question.  
  
"I apparate inside the building." April stood up.  
  
"Kingsley, do what you need to with this piece of shit. Ok, I want Jackson, Miller, um, Yates, Freddie and Nancy, you come with me, we're going to go and fetch James." April left the room and went up to Lily and James' bedroom. On the back of the door was the invisibility cloak. April went to the window and looked out. Lily was looking at the window slightly annoyed. April gave her a shrug and a be-there-in-a-moment look. April turned and went downstairs. The aurors she'd picked were ready to go with her.  
  
"Moody, I'm off." April said.  
  
"Where you going?" Moody asked.  
  
"Fetch Potter." April said.  
  
"Ok, when you come back you send him to St. Mungos if he's injured, we'll tidy this place up and make sure you get Lily Potter to come home. If she's not kidnapped-"  
  
"She's not kidnapped, I just saw her." April said. Moody narrowed his eyes suspiciously. April waved her hand, "Oh, whatever." April walked out the back door and went to where Lily was.  
  
"What took you so long?" Lily asked.  
  
"Sorry," April said, "Moody was there and I couldn't sneak past him so we got some information out of the Death Eater that attacked you." April said. Lily looked at the Aurors that were following April to where they were.  
  
"Right, and this lot are coming why?" Lily asked.  
  
"James is being guarded by a Welsh Green" April said.  
  
"What? Why? He's not that dangerous is he?" Lily asked.  
  
"Oh, it's not to keep him in, it's to keep us out. But fortunately, we know how to get past the Dragon." April said.  
  
"So why bring the cloak?" Lily asked.  
  
"Just in case, you take it." April said, handing the silver cloak to Lily. April turned to the Aurors who had just joined them. "Alright people, all apparate to the Scottish branch of the ministry and we'll liase at the Auror department there, from there we'll decide what to do." April said. The aurors nodded and disappeared one by one. April turned to Lily. "You want to come? I know you don't really like violence." April said.  
  
"I'm coming, James is my husband." Lily said. April looked at her anxiously.  
  
"But what if you get kil-"  
  
"No, I'm going April." Lily said. April nodded.  
  
"Yeah, I knew that, I was just checking, so Scottish Ministry." April said. Lily nodded and closed her eyes. She held onto her wand, it was a long apparition, it was going to take a lot of magic. Lily heard a loud crack and then it was closely followed by another one. She opened her eyes and she was in a fairly small lobby area with posh wooden benches going down the centre of the hall, there were plants growing around the benches and gave the room a greenhouse feel. There was a small desk at the side of the room and a corridor that led off to the various departments. April apparated next to her and held onto Lily's arm.  
  
"Stick with me, they know me here so you don't have to worry." April said. Lily gave her a long look. "Sorry, I'm just in official business mode, it's hard to mix the two."  
  
"I forgive you." Lily said. "Lets go and find James then." April smiled.  
  
"You know, I would never do this for Sirius."  
  
"I know." Lily said, they walked down the corridor and April counted a few doors. "So why aren't you feeding your husband?" April smirked slightly.  
  
"Oh, it was his fault, he emptied the fridge last night." April said. "So I couldn't feed him." April went to a door and pushed it open. Lily read the small label on the door. ANIMAL CONTROL. Lily scowled but followed April in.  
  
"Hey, Dennis." April said. A fairly tall man with strong broad shoulders appeared from behind a stack of crates.  
  
"April!" He said with a grin. He looked fairly red, like he'd spent a lot of time in the sun. He glanced at Lily, taking her in. "Who's the friend?"  
  
"She's a Healer." April said. Dennis' grin widened, "And James Potter's wife," April said with a smirk. Lily had to try not to laugh as Dennis' expression dropped.  
  
"Man, the guy gets everything." He said.  
  
"I know, it's unfair." Lily said sweetly. Dennis gave her a slightly defeated shrug.  
  
"Anyway, Welsh Greens, you up to put one down?" April asked.  
  
"I can't put it down without a warrant but I can knock it out and move it to where it should be. Why?"  
  
"Welsh green up in Orkney, we're going to go up there, we know how to get up there but we're not leaving a damned Dragon up there." April said.  
  
"Why's there a Dragon there?" Dennis asked as he gathered up some equipment.  
  
"James was captured and his hair was used for a Polyjuice potion in an attempt to kill me and my son. Now we're going up there to get him." Lily said. "This is just like a precaution but you know, Dragons aren't the best of things to leave unattended on an island to snack on innocent Muggles." Dennis smirked.  
  
"Too right, well. You headed up there now?" Dennis asked.  
  
"As soon as we can." April said.  
  
"Right, will see you in the Lobby." Dennis said.  
  
"Thanks." April led Lily out of the room.  
  
"I'm impressed." Lily said. April looked at Lily with slight confusion.  
  
"About what?" April asked.  
  
"The impression I got from James about your Auror skills wasn't really very positive. You're quite good."  
  
"Oh please." April said, "You think this is impressive, you seen the work you do? I couldn't remember half the stuff you know. How do you remember symptoms, diseases, cures, spells, potions and all that? All I have to learn are a few spells." Lily shrugged. They went into another room. The aurors were standing around patiently.  
  
"Ok, we don't know this place that we're going to but we're going to have to go anyway." April said lightly. "We have Dennis the dragon man waiting and ready to take down our Welsh Green. So all we need to do is find James. You'll go in pairs, me, Miller and Lily will make a three" The Aurors nodded. Lily could swear that some of them looked so much older then April but she could tell that April was a higher rank by a little badge on their robes.  
  
"Ok, Orkney islands, lets go." April said enthusiastically clapping her hands. She turned to Lily. Lily knew what she wanted to know.  
  
"I can do anonymous apparitions." Lily said. April grinned.  
  
"Brilliant. Never doubted you."  
  
"Yes you did."  
  
"Yeah, you're right, but only because I'm worried." April said. They all went to the lobby where they met Dennis. He had a huge rope coiled around one arm, a bag on his shoulders and what looked like Dragon skin armour.  
  
"Like it?" He asked Lily.  
  
"Very fetching." Lily said. Dennis laughed and looked to April. April nodded and everyone closed their eyes ready for the apparition. Again Lily heard a crack as she apparated. Instead of willing herself to go to where April had set the meeting point she ended up somewhere else. On the second crack she stayed still. April had set an outside point. That meant the air should be fresh. Why did this air smell stale? Lily opened her eyes. The room was dark.  
  
"Lumos." Lily whispered. A disk of light skimmed across the walls. Lily looked around when the light went to a shape on the floor. A familiar shape.  
  
"James." Lily gasped, she dropped the cloak and dropped to James' side. He was unconscious, like he'd been put into an enchanted sleep. Lily could recognise the signs easily. She'd used the draught enough times on her patients. Lily put her wand to James head and muttered a small incantation. James eyes flickered open slightly.  
  
"Lily?" He asked groggily. He sat up and looked at her.  
  
"James." Lily said, she hugged him tightly. James seemed a bit taken aback and surprised to find himself where he was.  
  
"It's alright." James said. Lily let go and James pulled her into a kiss. "It's ok." Lily nodded and James gave her a weak smile. "We've been in a worse position. Now, how did we get here?"  
  
"You were kidnapped, I did an apparition that went wrong." Lily said.  
  
"Where were you supposed to go?" James asked.  
  
"I was supposed to meet April." Lily said. Lily quickly filled James in on everything "I'm really sorry if our small tiff yesterday got you-"  
  
"It's fine." James said, "As long as Harry and Emma are alright." Lily nodded.  
  
"They're safe." Lily said. James smiled and stroked Lily's cheek gently in a small moment. He kissed her before getting shakily to his feet. Lily picked up her wand and the cloak and got up as well.  
  
"Ok, have I got my wand?" James patted his body and grinned, "They're stupid Death Eaters aren't they?" He said as he pulled his wand out from a hidden pocket in his auror's robes.  
  
"Well, Padfoot did get the better of them at home." Lily said. James smiled into the dark. He could see Lily's light shining on what must be the door. "Alohamora." Lily said. Nothing happened. She frowned slightly. "Finite Incantatum." There was a slight squelching noise and the door opened. Light spilled into the room from the corridor. She turned to James.  
  
"Come on, I want to get out of here as quickly as we can." Lily said. James stepped up to her and looked in the hall in a way that reminded Lily of a James Bond movie she'd watched a while ago. James took her hand and led her down the corridor.  
  
"Stay really quiet." James said. He looked at Lily and smiled, "I didn't need to tell you that did I?" He asked. Lily shook her head. James came to a door and let go of Lily's hand. He pushed it open slowly with his left hand, his right hand holding onto his wand. Was it wrong that Lily was finding this all rather arousing? She shook herself and got ready for a battle if she needed to. James pushed the door open and stepped through the threshold of the door. He walked in and immediately had to retreat back to Lily and slam the door shut as a jet of red light narrowly passed his head.  
  
"Ok, Death Eaters in there" He said.  
  
"I noticed" Lily said. James looked at Lily.  
  
"You ready for a fight."  
  
"No"  
  
"Ok, lets go." James opened the door and turned around. "Expeliarmus, petrificus Totallus, immobulus" He shouted, firing the spells quite accurately but never quite hitting.  
  
"Stupefy!" Lily shouted, she hit a Death Eater square in the back. There were only Three so it wasn't that unfair. "Immobulous." She shouted.  
  
"Prtoego" The Death Eater said in return. The spell rebounded. Lily ducked and rolled to the door. The spell hit the spot Lily had just been. She peered around the door.  
  
"Expeliarmus" She said. The spell just clipped the Death Eater and he lost his wand.  
  
"Accio wand." James said, the wand flew to him  
  
"Stupefy." Lily said, stunning the Death Eater. One more to go.  
  
"Petrificus Totallus" James said, throwing the jinx at the Death Eater. He froze and fell to the floor with a thud just as the door opened and more figures came in. "Lily, stay where you are" James said. "Stupefy!"  
  
"Stupefy" Someone else shouted. The spells collided in midair and seemed to rebound off each other. James dived towards Lily and came to a stop in a crouch just beyond the protection of the door. He held his wand ready as the other figure looked at him.  
  
"James?" She said. James grinned and turned to Lily.  
  
"It's alright, it's April." He said. James got to his feet and Lily followed him out of the protection.  
  
"Lily! That's where you were. You got us so worried." April said engulfing Lily in a hug. James cleared his throat and April let go.  
  
"She's mine." James said putting his arms around Lily's waist.  
  
"I'm not an object." Lily said with a smile, she happily leant against James.  
  
"Alright, I don't want to split this up but we have to get back. James you hurt?" April asked.  
  
"Nope." James said, April nodded and turned to Miller.  
  
"Get the others to clear this place out. Once Dennis is through with the dragon, pay him off and then we're done here." Miller nodded and started back to where they had come from. April turned again.  
  
"You two!" She scolded. "Break it apart!" She went to Lily and James and pulled them off each other.  
  
"Sorry." Lily said. "You know me and James."  
  
"James, you're a professional Auror...act like one!" April said. James grinned.  
  
"Sorry." James said, "There's a reason I persuaded Lily to be a healer."  
  
"You did not persuade me, I decided for myself." Lily said turning to look at James. She crossed her arms.  
  
"And who helped you make that decision?" James asked. Lily grinned. April stepped between the two.  
  
"James, Lily, you have to go home now."  
  
"Our pleasure." James said.  
  
"And you have to go and collect the kids and I'm off back to the headquarters" April said, trying to be serious.  
  
"Tell Jenny and Remus to keep Harry and Emma for another night." Lily said.  
  
"Or two." James added. April gave a soft whine and hit her head with her palm.  
  
"Why!" She asked. Lily gave her sweet smile.  
  
"You're as bad with Sirius." Lily said. "Oh." Lily turned to James, "Guess what?"  
  
"What?" James asked, managing to get past April and get his arms around Lily again.  
  
"Sirius is Pregnant." Lily said. April's serious expression melted away and was replaced by a grin. James' mouth dropped open.  
  
"How?" He asked.  
  
"You remember that thing I was threatening you with when I had Emma?" Lily asked.  
  
"The thing that made people see what it was like to be pregnant, like it lasts for nine months?" James asked. Lily nodded. James burst out laughing.  
  
"Guess who's got that on?" April asked. James' laughter seemed to double, he had to hold onto Lily for support.  
  
"Oh Merlin, that's funny!" James said, "So he feels...and you can...and he..." He seemed to have lost the ability to finish a sentence. Lily and April looked at each other.  
  
"It really isn't that funny." Lily said.  
  
"Yes it is!" James said. "Oh, this is going to be so fun!" He was sitting on the floor clutching his stomach. Lily and April glanced at each other again. April shrugged and Lily pulled James to his feet.  
  
"Lets get home." She said. James's laughter seemed to subside slightly and he had a mischievous twinkle in his eye.  
  
"Oh please." April muttered.

* * *

**A/N:-Ok, so that wasn't all action but i'm still proud of hte chapter. There is actually a Death Eater called Travers.....i just made up his first name..hehe. Anyway, Hope you liked this chapter, hope it explained some of your questions, e.g. Where's James, where's Lily. and all that. I forgot to write in (a few chapters ago) just before James got kidnapped what he was thinking. He was very distracted because he had a fight with Lily earlier tht day, true it wasn't much of a fight but it's the first fight they had really, as a couple since Voldemort. Hm...anything else. Ok, so next chapter will be a bit like a relaxing chapter, nothing very big will happen (though i think Emma gets a present) I've lost track of what happens in what chapters. Hope you like this chapter, I'm still loving your reviews, so cool. Oh and Rhia....ROCK ON!! (I'm really hyper at the moment)**


	6. Safely back home

  
  
**Safely back home**  
  
April apparated to Remus and Jenny's house. She had risked leaving her own children with Sirius, which considering his past with them, probably wasn't a good idea. She was just going to check on Harry and Emma. She didn't think that it would be a good idea to let them go home today. April knocked on the door of their bungalow, cottage thing and the door opened. Jenny stood in the doorway.  
  
"April!" Jenny said moving aside. "Is Lily and James alright?" April gave Jenny a reluctant look.  
  
"I'd say they are." She said tightly. Jenny looked at her curiously.  
  
"What does that mean?" Jenny asked.  
  
"They want you to look after Emma and Harry for a few more days" April said. Jenny raised an eyebrow then smirked.  
  
"I see they're getting their old passion back" Jenny said.  
  
"When did they ever lose it?" April asked.  
  
"True, you want a drink or something?" Jenny asked.  
  
"Um, I don't know. I left Sirius with the kids." April said uncertainly.  
  
"Oh, you have to trust him" Jenny said, "He's not going to end up letting them set themselves on fire" April went pale.  
  
"Shit, maybe I shouldn't leave them together" April said. Jenny put a hand firmly on April's arm.  
  
"April, Relax, Sirius isn't going to kill your children, he loves them and you too much."  
  
"Then why did he get me pregnant?" April muttered darkly  
  
"Well you've gotten your revenge haven't you?" Jenny asked with a twinkle in her eyes. She knew. April gave a slight smile. "Aren't you feeling tired at all?"  
  
"A bit but Auror work all day, kids at night...Sirius" April said. Jenny gave a slight frown.  
  
"When's your pregnancy leave?"  
  
"In a week. I'm going over to Mum's for dinner that evening" April said. She sat in the living room.  
  
"That should be fun."  
  
"Apparently Becky's adopted" April said.  
  
"Really? I never thought she'd have children." Jenny said.  
  
"She didn't, she adopted" April said. Jenny nodded. At that moment Emma came running in and jumped onto April. April sat up properly.  
  
"Be careful." April said.  
  
"Why?" Emma asked.  
  
"Because she's pregnant again." Jenny said. Emma looked at Jenny then turned to April.  
  
"What Pegnant?" Emma asked confused.  
  
"I'm having another baby." April said. Emma's eyes lit up.  
  
"Where?" Emma asked. "Can I see?" Jenny grinned and April laughed.  
  
"No you can't. It's in my belly" April said. Emma looked at April with a set face. April knew that face. Emma rummaged through April's robes and then found her shirt. She lifted it slightly and looked at April's belly.  
  
"Nuffing there." Emma said. "Bellybutton." She poked April's belly button and laughed when April squirmed. She didn't like people touching her there. Only Sirius.  
  
"Stop it Emma." Emma gave April an innocent smile. Jenny picked up Emma and put her on her lap. Emma leant against Jenny with a thumb in her mouth.  
  
"I really should go and stop Sirius from mutilating my children." April said.  
  
"It's only six." Jenny said.  
  
"Yeah, but I'm tired as well. It's been a really long day." April said. "We've had to rescue Lily, James, Lily again. Fight a dragon..." April faded to silence.  
  
"You just can't have a normal life can you?" Jenny asked. April shook her head.  
  
"Nope, not really." April said. She gave a yawn. "Anyway, I'm off. See you tomorrow hopefully." Jenny gave April a small wave while Emma gave her a smile.  
  
"Bye aunt April." Emma said.  
  
"Bye"

* * *

The next morning Lily lay in the bed with her head on James' chest. Her eyes were still closed and she was still on the fringe of sleep, until she felt James' hand on the small of her back. She opened her eyes sleepily.  
  
"James?" Lily muttered.  
  
"Hey." He said quietly into her hair. Lily put her arms around James even tighter.  
  
"Never do that to me again." Lily muttered against his skin.  
  
"Do what?" He asked.  
  
"Leave me." Lily said. James pulled Lily closer.  
  
"So you're not angry with me anymore?" James asked.  
  
"No." Lily said, she propped herself on James' chest slightly. "I'm not upset anymore but just keep a better watch on Harry next time." James smiled and leant up to give Lily a kiss.  
  
"Don't worry." James said. Lily smiled, or attempted to. James frowned and wrapped his arms around her. "We'll be fine, I promise. I was just a bit distracted that night, that was all. As long as we don't fight, I'll be ok." James said. Lily sighed and closed her eyes. She loved the feel of James' skin against hers. She kissed his chest quickly before nestling in a comfier position in his arms.  
  
"GOOD MORNING!" shouted Sirius. James bolted upright, taking some blanket with him. Lily grabbed onto the duvet to stop Sirius from seeing anything.  
  
"Sirius!" James shouted at him. Sirius gave them a grin.  
  
"So what have you two been up to?" He asked.  
  
"Get lost Sirius." Lily muttered as she lay back down.  
  
"Aw, Lily, but I need breakfast!" Sirius said.  
  
"Go ask April."  
  
"I did." Sirius said.  
  
"And what did she say?" James asked rather annoyed. He sat back in his bed, against the headboard. Lily rested her head on his body again. Sirius sat on the dressing table chair dejectedly.  
  
"Go find my own food. And I would go and get my own food but She's got all the muggle money, and I really can't be bothered to go and get some gold out of gringotts"  
  
"Give him some gold and shut him up" Lily muttered to James. James smiled and threw a bag of coins at Sirius. Sirius looked in it.  
  
"Could you do that downstairs?" Lily asked. "James and I were talking!"  
  
"I'm sure you were." Sirius said looking through the bag. Lily sighed and reached over James for her wand. She aimed it at Sirius and sent a stinging hex at him.  
  
"OW!" He shouted. He jumped off the seat and looked around.  
  
"Get out of the room Sirius." James said with a smirk. Sirius glared at them.  
  
"Fine! But you two are boring now. Kids have made everyone boring!" Sirius said.  
  
"We were always like this." Lily said, "You were always complaining about us" Sirius sneered at them and left the room. He slammed the door as if to make a point.  
  
"Now what were we talking about again?" James asked. Lily grinned and pushed herself up a bit so she was level with James. She put her lips against his when the door opened again.  
  
"Hey you two-" Lily pulled the duvet up again to cover herself. Sirius made a slight face and began to inch out. "Just stopping to say that James gets the day off-"  
  
"Sirius BLACK!" Lily shouted angrily but Sirius had darted from the house

* * *

"You can't catch me!" Harry shouted at Emma. Emma glared at him and chased him around the house. They'd been playing IT for some time now and it was driving Jenny around the bend because not only was it just the Potter children but Bo had decided to join in as well and all Remus did was levitate things out of the way. Well, she supposed that was ok but still! Harry ducked under the kitchen table and then through the door into the hallway. He was about to run for the nearest door, Bo's room when Bo blocked the hallway.  
  
"Get him Emma!" Bo said. Emma grinned and tried to run faster. Harry stopped and had to think quickly of a way to get past Bo. In the end he just lunged for Bo. Both boys started play fighting in the hallway with Emma looking vaguely confused. What happened to their game?  
  
"Harry? Bo?" Emma asked slightly confused.  
  
"Ah!" Bo growled while Harry tried to get his arm around the bigger boy's neck.  
  
"No!" Harry shouted as Bo managed to get up with Harry's stuck in a sort of headlock. "AH! Let me go." Harry said. Emma grinned and started giggling.  
  
"Only if you don't fight me again" Bo said.  
  
"Alright!" Harry said. Bo let Harry go and Harry looked at him with what dignity the five year old had left. Bo shook his head slightly. Emma laughed and went to Harry and hugged him. Harry struggled slightly but figured that there was no way he was going to get his sister off so let her hug him.  
  
"Where's your mum?" Bo asked. Harry shrugged. "Dad?" Harry shrugged. Bo thought for a while.  
  
"Do you know how to fly?" Harry asked.  
  
"A little bit." Bo said. Harry's eyes lit up. Bo grinned. "Mum! DAD! Can we go flying?"  
  
"No!" Jenny said, "Not without your dad with you."  
  
"Where's dad?" Bo asked.  
  
"He's having a shower." Jenny said.  
  
"After he's had his shower?" Bo asked.  
  
"Then you'll have to ask him." Jenny said.  
  
"Coool." Bo said, making the word longer then it should be.

* * *

Lily placed some of the files down at the nurses station. So much for a day spent with James! About ten minutes after Sirius had left an owl had come with a letter saying Lily was needed at the hospital. Someone had come in with a rare condition and Lily's superior felt the need to bring Lily in to show her. Lily's superior seemed to love her. After everyone had finished their training there were Healers that were given the newly trained Healers just to see them through their transition from healer-in-training to fully fledged healer. Lily was nearing the end of this transition and soon she'd have a ward of her own but for now, she was stuck under the influence of Gordon Ramsay, a fairly young Italian healer. Lily didn't really have anything against him, he was a nice man, but like every other male healer in St. Mungos, he'd hit on Lily more then once. St. Mungos was a slightly perverted place!  
  
"Ok, I've just given Miss. Ben a few counter-jinxes and she should be ready to leave in about two hours, just giving her some rest" Lily said to Janice, at the Nurses station.  
  
"Ok, and what about Mr. Kinery?" Janice asked.  
  
"Oh, him. Well...I've tried to figure out how to cure him but he's just so difficult, he won't let me try anything on him." Lily said  
  
"I'm sure he would if you asked really nicely." Janice said with a cheeky smile.  
  
"Does anyone here remember that I'm married and I have two children?" Lily asked.  
  
"Evidently not." Janice said with a smirk. Lily turned around to see the same two wizards from the day before giving her some rather obscene sexual gestures. Lily gave a tired sigh and slammed her files and things down on the desk before turning around and walking up to the wizards.  
  
"May I help you?" Lily asked.  
  
"Yeah," One of them said, he had floppy brown hair and a face covered in freckles. "I have an itch just here and I'm worried it's a disease, could you check it out for me?" He asked with a laugh as he indicated to his crotch. Lily didn't look at all amused.  
  
"You'll be wanting a different ward then, this is spell Damage." Lily said in a strained voice.  
  
"Oh right." Said the other one. "Well, I got something jammed up my arse could you-"  
  
"Lily!" came a voice Lily was so happy to hear. She turned to see James walking down the corridor.  
  
"James." Lily said with a smile.  
  
"Yeah, anyway, so what are you going to do about this itch?" The first wizard said. Lily turned to look at him.  
  
"I said go to a different floor. What are you doing hanging around here. Are you here to see a patient or what?"  
  
"My fabulous Uncle Kinery has been injured, we've come to see him." Said the second wizard  
  
"Figures" Lily muttered. James came up to her and put an arm around Lily's shoulder.  
  
"Hey, you ready to go to Lunch?" James asked, giving Lily a quick kiss on the cheek.  
  
"Yeah, let me just-" Lily started to turn around.  
  
"Whoa, wait. I thought we had plans." Said the first Wizard, "That itch I was talking about." He gave a cocky smile to Lily. Lily looked at James pleadingly. She loved it when James got...revenge on those who hit on her. She could tell James was trying not to blow his top already.  
  
"Ok, who are you?" James asked the two wizards. "Get moving or stop harassing my wife!"   
  
"Wife? Ain't you a bit young to be married?" One of the wizards asked.  
  
"No I'm not. James, do your auror thing on them." Lily said waving a dismissive hand as she returned to the nurses station.   
  
"Shit, an Auror?" the second wizard asked, James nodded and got out his wand "We didn't mean anything. Honest. It was just some playful-"  
  
"Move along before I curse you." James said. The two wizards hurried along the hallway and through the doors at the end. Janice was laughing with a trainee nurse that had joined them. James returned to Lily, who was cursing under her breath.  
  
"Nice one." Janice said. James gave the two nurses a quick smile. The trainee nurse went slightly red and looked at the files she had to sort.  
  
"You ready?" James asked Lily.  
  
"Give me a minute. I just have to sort out Mr. Kinery." Lily said. She picked up a file and headed towards the ward. James followed her and sat on a chair, just inside the ward door. Lily went to the first bed on the left. "Ok, Mr. Kinery. I'm off duty very soon so I just need you to let me do this quick spell and you'll be ready to go." Lily said to the man in the bed. James sat back in his seat and enjoyed the view. The man in the bed looked at Lily with a smirk.  
  
"And what if I refuse to-"  
  
"I would usually stun an uncooperative patient but you see that man over there." Lily said nodding to James, Mr. Kinery nodded. "He's an auror waiting to take me for lunch, so if you make me late he won't be pleased at all." Mr. Kinery scowled and nodded. "Finally" Lily breathed. She got out her wand and tapped various bits of My. Kinery that had been subject to curses and muttered the counter jinxes. Mr. Kinery soon resembled a normal human being.  
  
"Thank you, now you have to stay here for another hour or so then you can leave." Lily said. Mr. Kinery nodded. Lily gave him a smile then turned to James. "Coming?" She asked sweetly. James grinned and got up. He put an arm around Lily as Lily returned to Janice and gave her a file.  
  
"Ok, here's Mr. Kinery's file. He's all done. Give him an hour before you kick him out of the hospital" Lily said. Janice smirked.  
  
"Alright. Have fun. Remember you need to be back in an hour and a half for that operation thing on David Peters." Janice reminded Lily.  
  
"How could I forget." Lily said. She left with James, who put his arm around Lily even more and pulled her closer. Lily giggled slightly.  
  
"So where are we going?" Lily asked.  
  
"I was thinking, Diagon Alley." James said.  
  
"Oh, that's brilliant. I wanted to get Emma that cat she wanted." Lily said. James looked at Lily.  
  
"You're getting a cat?" James asked.  
  
"Why not?" Lily said. James shook his head.  
  
"No reason."  
  
"James, you agreed with me the other day." Lily said. "You said, lets get a pet for the kids so I'm getting a pet for the kids."  
  
"Yeah, but a cat? You know what Padfoot will be like?" James asked.  
  
"Then we'll just have to ban Padfoot from the house." Lily said. James chuckled.   
  
"Alright." He said kissing Lily's forehead. "Um, as much as I love you in your uniform, do you think you could change before we go to Diagon Alley?" James asked. Lily gave him a curious look.  
  
"Why?" She asked.  
  
"I don't want more people flirting with my wife." James said, giving Lily a kiss on the lips. Lily grinned.  
  
"Alright, let me go and get my bag, stay here." Lily said, giving James another kiss before going into a door behind her.  
  
"Can I come?" James asked. Lily laughed.  
  
"It's a girl's changing room James."  
  
"So?"

* * *

There was a loud knocking at the door. Remus detangled himself from the pile of children and managed to get to the door.  
  
"Bloody hell, those kids are violent." He muttered as he straightened his clothes. Jenny had offered to take Orion and Rhia and all five children had formed a huge bundle on the floor, then they'd turned against Remus. Remus opened the door to see James gazing curiously in a gap between the roof and the wall.  
  
"May I help you?" Remus asked.  
  
"Um, yes. I believe my children are here. They're about this tall. One has black hair the other has red." James said. Remus frowned.  
  
"Hm...I don't think I've seen them around." He said. James grinned and Remus laughed. "They're probably at the bottom of the bundle." Remus said.   
  
"Bundle?" James asked. He followed Remus into the living room, "Ah."  
  
"Daddy!" Emma shouted.  
  
"Where!" Harry asked. Both children crawled free, making Rhia and Bo nearly crash on top of Orion.  
  
"Ah!" Rhia screamed as she rolled backwards. James hugged both his children. Oh it felt good to see them.  
  
"Do you want to go home?" James asked.  
  
"No." Emma said. "Rhia, Bo and Orion here."  
  
"But presents at home." James said. Harry and Emma looked at each other, their eyes sparkling.  
  
"Lets go home!" Harry said. Emma started pushing James.  
  
"Go home Daddy! Go home!" James laughed and picked Emma up.  
  
"See you around mate." He said to Remus, "I hope they weren't any trouble."  
  
"Oh, not really, same as you and Sirius would have been at that age." Remus said. James laughed.  
  
"Did they break anything?"  
  
"Thankfully not. I think thanks to those two and my son my levitating skills are about ten times better!" Remus said. James laughed.  
  
"Well see you." James said. He went to the fireplace and soon he stumbled out of the other side with Harry landing on top of him. Emma was laughing and turned to see her mum sitting on the sofa.  
  
"Right. I vaguely remember you saying you were going to take a portkey." Lily said as Emma ran up to her and climbed onto the sofa.   
  
"Well I was but then I remembered it was illegal." James said.  
  
"And when has that ever stopped you?" Lily asked with a smirk. She cuddled Emma as James and Harry got to their feet. Harry was beaming at James.  
  
"Can we do that again?" Harry asked.  
  
"Not right now." James said. Harry nodded.  
  
"Can we go flying?" Harry asked.  
  
"After I've given Emma a small present." Lily said.  
  
"But I want to go now!" Harry complained. Lily looked at James.  
  
"Alright, get changed into something clean and we'll go out." Harry grinned and ran off.  
  
"Present please." Emma said with a wide cheesy grin. Lily laughed and put Emma on the sofa and left the room for a moment. Emma looked at James slightly confused.  
  
"Where mummy gone?" Emma asked.  
  
"Getting your present." James said. Emma grinned. Lily returned with what looked like a Wicca cat box. Emma stood up curiously.  
  
"Ooo." Emma said. Lily put the box on the sofa. Emma knelt down and looked in it. "CAT!" She screamed with delight. There was a tiny mewing from inside the cat box. She hurriedly opened the front of the box and put her hands in. "Here kitty." She said. A tiny black kitten with a white underbelly and white paws stepped out. It had a tiny pink nose and another small patch of white around it. Emma picked it up carefully like it was a very delicate doll. The kitten purred slightly and Emma grinned.  
  
"Do you like him?" Lily asked.  
  
"Kitty pretty" Emma said. Lily smiled and put the cat box on the floor.  
  
"What are you going to call him?" James asked. Emma looked at the kitten  
  
"Phibi" Emma said. Lily scowled.  
  
"Phibi?" Lily asked.  
  
"Yeah, like school teacher."  
  
"Oh, Pheobe." Lily said. Pheobe was what the leader of Emma's playgroup was called. Emma nodded frantically then shifted gaze back to the cat.  
  
"But it's a boy." James said. Emma thought for a moment.  
  
"Baloo" She said. Lily smiled.  
  
"Alright." James said. Emma had recently been pretty obsessed with the Disney movie The Jungle Book. Lily had only bought it to see what the kids would make of it. She said she'd loved Disney when she was Emma's age. Emma gave the kitten a soft kiss on it's nose and the kitten mewed. Lily looked at James very pleased with herself. James got up and gave her a kiss.  
  
"Good choice." James whispered.  
  
"Now, it's your turn." She said, "Lets see how well you can teach Harry to fly."  
  
"I promise I won't let him fall." James said.  
  
"I trust you." Lily said. James gave her another kiss, it was slightly more passionate then the last one. They only broke apart when Harry dragged in James' broom.   
  
"Dad!" Harry said. "EW!" Lily and James broke apart and James grinned.  
  
"Ok, come on."

* * *

James had flown Harry out near to an area near a small lake near their house. It was the safest place to be and it was fare away enough so they wouldn't be seen by any of the Muggles. James had Harry's Kid's Comet 120 on the floor next to his own Comet 260. Ah, his trusty old broom that had won him how many Quidditch championships at school?  
  
"Ok, Harry stand next to your broom and put your hand over it like this." James showed Harry. Harry copied him. "Now say up."  
  
"Up." Harry's broom shot into his hand. Harry grinned. James smiled.  
  
"Great now ride your broom like me." James said. He put a leg on either side of the broom. Harry copied. "And kick off slowly." James showed Harry then hovered a few feet above Harry. Harry kicked off and he slowly began to rise in the air. Harry gripped onto his broom as tightly as he could.  
  
"Don't hold the broom too tightly Harry." James said. Harry began to relax slightly and the broom hovered a few meters away from James. James flew over. "Very good." James said. "I think I'll buy you something next time we go to Diagon Alley." Harry looked at James and grinned.  
  
"Really?" James nodded.  
  
"Yes!" Harry grinned. "Can we play Quidditch now?" James laughed  
  
"No, not yet." James said. "You need to get better at riding a broom first." James said.  
  
"What did Emma get?" Harry asked.  
  
"A new pet cat." James said. Harry's mouth dropped open. "Well you got a broom." Harry's mouth stayed open. James went over and pushed Harry's moth closed. Harry grinned. "Ok, and now I'll teach you how to move around a bit."  
  
After an hour Harry was flying ok. He was still rather shaky on the broom but he was doing well for his first time. He'd fallen off his broom once when he'd accidentally done a turn that was too sharp for him to keep his balance on. James decided to see if Harry could fly back to the house, so after he'd returned to the ground to get their things James led the way back to the house. Harry was a bit shaky at first but after a while he was flying confidently.  
  
"Ok, remember how I told you to land?" James asked. Harry nodded and pushed the front of the broom down slightly. The broom slowly returned to the ground. James touched down before Harry and then grinned with pride as Harry managed to land and only lose his balance as he tripped over a rock. It was better then when he'd almost collided with the ground earlier.  
  
"Well Done Harry!" James said. He bent over and gave Harry a hug. Harry was beaming. James picked Harry up and put him on his shoulders.  
  
"Can we go flying tomorrow?" Harry asked. James thought for a moment.  
  
"Um, when I get back from work." James said. Harry nodded.  
  
"Why do you have to go to work?" Harry asked. James laughed slightly.  
  
"Because I have to make money so your mum and I can buy you and Emma nice things."  
  
"Oh, alright." Harry said. "Can I see Emma's new cat?" Harry asked  
  
"Yeah, sure." James said. They went through the kitchen and into the hall. They went into the Living room where Emma was sitting with her new pet cat, Baloo. They seemed to be getting along brilliantly. Lily wasn't in the room, James figured that she must trust Emma enough.  
  
"Oh," Harry said, he struggled off James' shoulders and James lowered him onto the floor. Harry went to the sofa.  
  
"My cat." Emma said, picking up Baloo and hugging him. The kitten struggled free and stood carefully on Emma's shoulders. Emma laughed as Baloo's tail stroked the side of her face.   
  
"What's he called?" Harry asked.  
  
"Baloo." Emma said.  
  
"Oh," Harry said, he reached forwards to stroke the cat.   
  
"Emma, where's mum?" James asked.  
  
"Bedroom" Emma said. James nodded and left the room.

* * *

**A/N:-Ok, I'm sure many of you are like ARG!! I have no idea why, coz i am. I completely messed up my set plans when i gave Emma that damned cat! oh well, it can be adapted. Oh and then there's the stuff with Sirius. I'm going through a Sirius-bashing mood right now. Also, there's a reason why Sirius isn't working. He's gonna help out around the house a bit more then I'm gonna do something really bad to Sirius. I just feel like being really evil to a character right now and Sirius got the short straw, I'll try and not be too harsh on him. Also, April changed when she had Rhia, she didn't want a child, so effectively, Rhia, Orion and baby to be are all unwanted pregnancies and weren't wanted but April loves them all the same. Also, April and Sirius have a love hate relationship. One minute they'll love each other, the next they'll hate each other. I have no idea why i got them to get married but hey! who cares, they're together! Hope that clears some stuff up a bit, I'm just in a really wierd mood at the moment. I'm just really wierd like that, please dont hurt me. I swear it'll make for some interesting storylines if you let me carry on the way i am going**


	7. Pick On Ginny Day

**Pick on Ginny Day**  
  
April gave a moan as she approached Azkaban.  
  
"Why?" She asked James. James looked at her.  
  
"Why what?" He asked.  
  
"Why do we have to do these rounds in Azkaban, just leave it to the Dementors!" She said.  
  
"Hasn't the Head auror already told us why we have to do this?"  
  
"Yes, many times!" April said. James nodded uncertainly.  
  
"It'll be ok." James said grimly. He hated going to Azkaban so much. Every time he went he went past Wormtail's cell. And every time April or James saw him he'd beg for his life, beg to be let out of the prison. James looked at April. She'd gone slightly pale. She never looked like this when they'd come in the past. Usually April would give a shiver or two.  
  
"Are you ok?" James asked, putting an arm around April for support.  
  
"I'll be ok." April said. "It's just that it's effecting me more then usual."  
  
"Do you think that it's because of your baby?" James asked. April shrugged.  
  
"Maybe" April said.  
  
"Do you want to go back?" James asked.  
  
"It's my last day as an auror for a year. Let me carry out a full day's work." James looked at her uncertainly then nodded. They went through some large wooden doors into the reception of the prison. There were Dementor Guards at the doors. James could feel their presence focused on him. He tried to block out the feeling of dread and despair that they gave him. He closed his eyes for a moment and shook himself internally. He was going to fight this. He opened his eyes and went to the reception desk with April. The man at the desk looked at them grimly. He looked as though he hadn't seen a happy moment in his life before.  
  
"James Potter and April Marsden, Rank eight Aurors." James said. The man nodded and indicated to a door to the right. James looked at April and they headed to the door. James glanced around. This was not a happy prison at all. The walls were grey, nearly black, and they had lichen and moss growing in the cracks. It was like the walls were living. They were leeching the life away from the people in the prison to live themselves. Add the Dementors and...well James felt like he wanted to die. He felt like he wasn't going to see his family again, it was like when his sister and parents had died all over again. James pushed the door open. Immediately the reception was filled with anguished screams and cries from the prisoners inside the prison. April went in and James followed.  
  
They walked down the corridors, they just needed to make sure everything was alright. They didn't look into any of the cells. Most were filled with Death Eaters that they had caught, quite a few of them, April and James had caught themselves. They came to where the corridor went off into a T. They were about to go right when a Ministry official known as Barty Crouch came towards them, holding his wife. His wife didn't look well at all. James had heard things about Barty Crouch's family, it wasn't really good. His wife looked incredibly ill. Barty crouch looked at them and gave them a nod of acknowledgment. James and April both gave nods back. Barty Crouch and his wife went to the exit and left the prison.  
  
"Wish I could do that" April muttered.  
  
"We just need to have a quick look around." James said. He gave her a reassuring look and they kept walking. April looked a lot worse then usual, James was actually getting quite worried for her. They walked down another corridor, James trying to fight off upsetting images the whole time. He hadn't failed to notice that they were being stalked by a few dementors. They were walking past the cells when someone threw themselves at the bars of their cells on April's side. April took a step towards James and glanced at the cell.  
  
"Please, let me go, I'm so sorry!" Sobbed a fairly short man who had a slightly rat like face and watery eyes. He looked like he'd lost a lot of weight in a short space of time. His hair was greying slightly, at his young age and it appeared to be balding.  
  
"Let go of my robes Wormtail." April growled at him. He didn't let go.  
  
"Please I'm so sorry" He sobbed. His body was shaking as he tried desperately to cling onto April's robes. James kicked Wormtail's hand and he retreated into his cell, clutching it.  
  
"Don't you touch either one of us. You're going to stay in this cell until you rot Wormtail." James said. The man shook his head.  
  
"No, please"  
  
"It's the price you pay for selling your 'friends' out to Voldemort" April said. There seemed to be a collective shudder at the word Voldemort. All the prisoners gave out short shouts of fear or started crying, sobbing or howling. Which ever one they'd been doing or preferred. James tore his gaze away from the pitiful man he had called his friend and walked on. April glanced at Wormtail before she walked on as well.  
  
"If only we could authorise the kiss on that man." April said. No one liked Wormtail any more, well, he had ratted Lily and James to Voldemort and had tried to kill each one of them at least once and had caused April to be a rape victim!  
  
"We could try. One of us has to become Minister so that we can." James said.  
  
"That's aiming high." April said.  
  
"Minster or head auror."  
  
"Can I be head auror?" April asked. James knew she was trying to be enthusiastic but it didn't sound like that. Azkaban made it seem like touching skin was like touching cardboard.  
  
"Yeah, I suppose you can but it's not my choice" James said. April risked a glance in a cell. They were in the high security area now. There were twice as many dementors here and there was a bigger feeling of dread. She looked into a cell where there was a woman with dark hooded eyes and long dark hair that looked uncared for. She held a very very vaguely resemblance to Sirius. April felt like killing that woman for what she'd done. Not to April personally but to the Longbottoms.  
  
"Lets get out of here quickly." April muttered. James nodded, he couldn't agree more. He wanted to get out and kiss Lily, hug Harry and Emma, even cuddle that god damned cat that Lily had bought Emma. They tried to hurry through the prison, everything was fine, nothing out of the ordinary. They returned to the reception. The man at the reception desk nodded and they left. The effects of the island of dementors hadn't worn off until they got to mainland Scotland. It was like their influence flew with the wind. When they got back to the mainland April sat down shakily on a bench in the street. They were in a muggle street and April had taken her robes off. She always wore Muggle clothes underneath, as did James. James pulled his robes off as well and stood in his jeans and shirt.  
  
"Are you sure you're going to be ok?" James asked April, he put hand on April's back.  
  
"Yeah, but I do feel a bit sick." April said.

* * *

"I feel sick." Sirius said to Lily. Lily looked at him sympathetically. She was at April's house today because Emma wanted to show Rhia her new cat. They were in the garden playing with the kitten while Orion had taken an interest in the cat's basket.  
  
"It's called morning sickness" Lily said trying to keep a straight face.  
  
"I hate it!" Sirius said, "I've been feeling like this for ages!" Lily started giggling, she couldn't hold it in any more. "It's not funny!" Sirius said.  
  
"You're right!" Lily said trying to be serious. "It's hilarious!" She burst out laughing and leant against Sirius's shoulder. While the two adults were talking Harry walked into the room bored. He glanced around looking for something to do. He saw Orion peering into the cat basket. Harry smirked slightly and went over to Orion.  
  
"There are toys in the back of the basket." Harry said to Orion like it was a secret. Orion looked at Harry and crawled further into the basket. Harry slowly closed the door so that Orion wouldn't notice and put on the small catch that kept the thing closed. Orion turned around and crashed into the wire frame door of the basket. Harry started laughing and wiggled his fingers in the wire door.  
  
"Out!" Orion shouted. "DADDY!" Sirius and Lily glanced at the two boys.  
  
"HARRY!" Lily shouted. Harry looked up and gave his mum an innocent smile.  
  
"He locked himself in there!" Harry said defensively. Sirius got up tiredly, apparently Pregnancy was starting to take it's toll on Sirius. Lily tried to keep her expression serious at that thought. Sirius went to the basket.  
  
"Stay still Orion." He said, "We'll get you out of there...somehow." Sirius looked at the basket slightly confused. Where was the catch? "Um, stay there Orion."  
  
"Where else is he supposed to go?" Lily asked. Sirius looked at Lily.  
  
"Good point" Sirius said. "Um, Lily how do you open this thing" Sirius asked. Lily got out her wand and summoned Orion over in the cat basket.  
  
"I'm really surprised your son can fit in here!" Lily said. She did something to the door and pulled Orion out. Orion looked like he was about to cry so Lily held him tightly.  
  
"Daddy." Orion moaned. Lily looked at Sirius. Sirius came over, moved the basket onto the floor. Orion climbed over to him and hugged him tightly. Lily looked at Harry sternly. He was giving her an innocent look and was inching his way out of the room.  
  
"You're not going anywhere Harry." Lily said closing the door. Harry's innocent façade fell. "What do you say to Orion."  
  
"You need to grow up?" Harry asked. Lily gave him an even sterner look. "Um..."  
  
"Harry!" Lily said dangerously.  
  
"Sorry" Harry muttered. Orion looked at Harry and buried his face in Sirius' shoulder tiredly.  
  
"Tired" Orion said.  
  
"Sleep in the cat box!" Harry said like it was a simple solution. Lily looked at him and Harry looked at the floor.  
  
"I'll put Orion in his bed for a quick nap. We've got to go to April's parents tonight." Sirius said.  
  
"Joy!" Lily said.  
  
"Yeah, should be nice. I haven't seen Mr. And Mrs. Marsden since, um...a few months ago."  
  
"I meant they have to feed two pregnant people. Do they know they're expecting two god children?" Lily asked with a smirk. Sirius sneered at her and left the room.  
  
"Can I go now?" Harry asked.  
  
"No." Lily said. "Come here." Harry inched forwards as he shuffled his feet. "Why did you lock Orion in the cat box?"  
  
"Because I was bored." Harry said. Lily looked at Harry sympathetically, he didn't actually have any friends his age, and his friends from his school were on holiday.  
  
"What do you want to do?" Lily asked.  
  
"Go and see Ron?" Harry asked hopefully. Lily frowned, she didn't know where the Weasley's lived. James had told her it was somewhere called the burrow. She nodded and stood up.  
  
"Stay here." Lily said. She left the room and went to the garden. "Emma, we have to go now honey." Emma looked at Lily like Lily had just said the worst thing.  
  
"Why?" she asked.  
  
"We're going to go and visit some friends"  
  
"Bo?" Emma asked.  
  
"Different friends." Lily said. Emma sighed and got to her feet. Baloo jumped into her arms and Emma held her tightly.  
  
"Bye Rhia."  
  
"Bye." Rhia said as she pulled some grass out of the ground. Emma followed Lily into the house. Lily had to admit that she didn't entirely trust leaving Emma here with Sirius. Sirius was a bit irresponsible. Emma put Baloo into his basket and turned to Lily. Lily got out a bag of Floo Powder.  
  
"Ok, go to The Burrow, can you do that Harry?" Lily asked. Harry nodded and took a handful of Floo Powder  
  
"The Burrow!" Harry shouted as he threw the floo powder into the fireplace. The green flames engulfed Harry and took him through the Floo network. He marvelled at the flickering fireplaces then suddenly he was spat out of the network. He managed to stay on his feet. He brushed the soot out of his hair and looked around. Ron's younger sister was sitting at the kitchen table with a sandwich half to her mouth.  
  
"Ginny hurry up and – Oh Harry." Said the funny red haired woman that was Ron's mum.  
  
"Ron here?" Harry asked. Mrs. Weasley looked slightly surprised then smiled.  
  
"Yes, he's in the living room" She said kindly. Harry ran off to look for the living room as Lily appeared with Emma and a cat basket in her arms.  
  
"Hi." Lily said putting Emma down. "I hope you don't mind but Harry was getting bored and he wanted to play with Ron-"  
  
"It's fine, you must be Lily Potter." Mrs. Weasley said. Lily smiled.  
  
"You must be Mrs. Weasley then" Lily said.  
  
"Call me Molly." She said, "This must be Emma. I've read about her" Emma grinned as Molly referred to her.  
  
"Hello" Emma said. Ginny put her sandwich down and walked over to them and looked in the basket.  
  
"Oh, it's a cat." Ginny said. Lily smiled and put the basket down.  
  
"You want see?" Emma asked Ginny. Ginny nodded. Emma let out the cat and picked him up.  
  
"Oh, he's cute" Ginny said, "can I hold?" Emma nodded and carefully transferred Baloo to Ginny's arms.  
  
"Would you like to stay for tea?" Molly asked. Lily gave her a grateful smile.  
  
"Do you mind if I just send an owl to my husband first."  
  
"Go ahead, but I'm afraid our owl is a bit unreliable." Molly said.  
  
"Oh, it's alright then" Lily said with a smile.

* * *

"So doctor George, what do you think is wrong with the cat?" Fred asked George. The two Weasley twins had decided that they wanted to play doctors with Emma's cat and had stolen Baloo while Ginny and Emma had been out playing. Unfortunately Emma had walked into their room while looking for Baloo and was now sitting on the bed. George and Fred circled the cat that mewed at them from the desk that had been moved to the center of the room.  
  
"It appears to be suffering from a severe form of Emma disease" George said. Emma looked at him annoyed. George gave her a grin. "I'm afraid we'll have to put it down" George produced a syringe filled with a clear liquid..  
  
"NO!" Emma shouted. George touched the end of the syringe against Baloo's skin and put it into the cat. Fred grinned.  
  
"Go on." Fred said. George put what ever it was into the cat while Fred held Emma back. The cat suddenly turned a bright shade of shocking pink. Emma's mouth dropped open while Fred and George looked at each other stunned.  
  
"Wow" George said. "I wasn't expecting that to happen." Emma went to the cat and picked him up. She cuddled him like a teddy bear  
  
"You ok Baloo?" Emma asked. The cat purred and his tiny tongue flicked out of his mouth and he licked Emma's cheek. "You two so howible!" Emma shouted at Fred and George.  
  
"No we're geniuses." Fred said, "I think we should try and make it yellow then we can test it on Ginny."  
  
"Lets see if Baloo's ok first" George said. He held out his hand towards Emma. "May we?"  
  
"No!" Emma said.  
  
"Please, we'll turn him back if you let us do one more test on him" Fred said. Emma looked at them skeptically, she clearly didn't trust them any more. George gave her a slight pout and Emma bit her lip slightly as she handed the cat to George. George grinned. Fred went to the window and opened it wide. Emma's eyes went wider then the window.  
  
"What you doing?" Emma asked. She ran to retrieve her cat but too late. George had thrown the cat out of the window as far as he could. The three stared out of the window and watched the shocking pink cat fly over Ron and Harry in the garden and land safely on it's paws on the patio beneath them. Ron and Harry looked at the cat then up at the window. Fred and George were grinning while Emma was looking rather annoyed.  
  
"Look, he's alright!" George said happily.  
  
"Mission accomplished." Fred said. The twins shook hands. Emma hit them both on the arm.  
  
"You evil!" She screamed before storming out of the room and running to the garden.  
  
"Now what color shall we use on Ginny?" Fred asked. George and Fred looked at each other slightly confused before they both broke out into identical grins.

* * *

Harry and Ron looked up at the window where they saw Fred and George grinning like idiots. Why had Emma's cat just fallen out of the sky? Baloo walked over to Harry and Harry picked him up carefully.  
  
"Who's cat is that? We don't have cat." Ron said with a frown.  
  
"Emma's cat" Harry said. Ron nodded slowly. Harry forgot, he didn't know who Emma was. "My sister."  
  
"Ah." Ron said. Harry looked out into the garden and saw one of those funny creatures running through the grass again.  
  
"What's that?" Harry asked, pointing at another one that was running around the garden. Ron rolled his eyes.  
  
"It is a gnome. They're ugly." Ron said. "Very ugly and annoying. Mummy makes Bill, Charlie and Percy...um...throw them away sometimes but it don't work. They always come back." Ron said with a frown.  
  
"Oh, they are funny looking." Harry said stroking Baloo.  
  
"Yeah. Bill told me that if you kiss one it will turn into a prince" Ron said. Harry looked at him.  
  
"Really?" He asked. Ron shrugged.  
  
"We could find out." Ron suggested.  
  
"Ok." Harry said. They turned to look at the door. Emma and Ginny were walking out of the house looking for Baloo.  
  
"Your brother throw Baloo out of window." Emma said, she sounded rather distressed.  
  
"Fred is stupid." Ginny said, "And George" Harry and Ron turned to each other with a grin on both boys faces.  
  
"Emma or Ginny?" Harry asked.  
  
"Baloo!" Emma shouted as she ran over to where Ron and Harry were sitting. Harry turned and Emma snatched Baloo from Harry and cuddled him. Baloo gave a soft mew. Ginny joined them.  
  
"What you doing?" Ginny asked.  
  
"We want to know if gnomes can turn into princes." Ron said.  
  
"They can't" Ginny said.  
  
"They can if you kiss them," Harry said. "My dad told me" Emma frowned at him and sat down next to Harry.  
  
"No they can't" Ginny said, "Princes live in big castles"  
  
"There was a prince who was a frog." Ron said.  
  
"So." Ginny said. She didn't want to let Ron trick her into anything but she was intrigued.  
  
"If you kiss a gnome it will turn into a prince." Ron said.  
  
"You kiss gnome." Emma said.  
  
"Only girls can kiss gnomes." Harry said to Emma. Emma stuck her tongue out in disgust.  
  
"Kissing is ew!" Emma said. "Mummy and daddy kiss all time. It is ew!" She said. Harry nodded his agreement.  
  
"Ginny, kiss the gnome, see if it turns into a prince?" Ron said. Ginny looked at him skeptically before turning to the garden.  
  
"Can't catch gnomes." Ginny said.  
  
"Ron and I will catch it for you" Harry said. Ron and Harry rushed to their feet and walked out into the tall grass. They looked around for a gnome.  
  
"There!" Ron said pointing at a small clump of grass with a bald head just visible. Harry and Ron ran at it and both dived for it at the same time. They both landed on the gnome and struggled with it, trying to keep it still. It fought back and bit Harry's hand.  
  
"AH!" Harry shouted, he got up and waved his hand in the air. Emma giggled and then laughed as she watched. Ginny was laughing slightly as well. Ron grabbed one of the gnome's legs. Harry dived and got the other leg while the gnome waved it wildly in the air. Eventually Harry got a firm grip of it and stood up. The gnome hung upside down between Harry and Ron. They marched back to Ginny with it looking very pleased with themselves and very dirty. They had dirt all over their clothes and faces. Ginny went slightly pale as the held the gnome out for her to kiss. Emma stuck her tongue out in disgust again. Harry and Ron were grinning. Ginny screwed up her face and moved closer to the gnome.  
  
"Ew." Emma said as Ginny gave the gnome a very quick kiss. The gnome had stopped struggling and was making weird purring noises. Baloo's fur stuck up slightly and he hissed at the gnome. Ginny pulled away and spat a bit to try and get the gnome germs off her tongue. When nothing happened she turned top Harry and Ron. They started laughing so much they let go of the gnome. They rolled on the floor while the gnome got to it's feet and looked at Ginny. Ginny looked at the gnome uncertainly. It took a step towards Ginny and she let out an ear-piercing scream. Ron, Harry and Emma all clamped their hands over their ears. Ginny ran away from the gnome and the gnome watched at her leaving looking rather upset before trudging into the garden. Harry and Ron soon resumed their laughing and Emma pulled Baloo closer to her.

* * *

Ginny sat downstairs, stroking the now back to normal cat. Emma's mum had been so nice and just changed him back with a flick of the wand. Emma was fuming. It was quite scary actually. Baloo wrapped his tail around Ginny's wrist for a moment before looking at the door. He jumped off Ginny and ran across the floor before leaping up into Emma's arms. Emma looked up as Fred and George walked into the room. Baloo hissed at them but Fred and George took no notice.  
  
"Ginny are you feeling thirsty?" Fred asked his younger sister.  
  
"No." Ginny said, looking at them suspiciously.  
  
"Oh, come on, we made a drink, just for you!" George said giving her a bottle of clear liquid. Ginny looked at them. "It's just water, honest." Ginny, still being naïve took the bottle.  
  
"Don't drink." Emma said, knowing what was most likely to be in the bottle. Too late. Ginny drank what was in the bottle. Fred and George both grinned. There was a small pop and not only had Ginny shrunken to about six inches tall, but she was also blue! Bright blue! Emma looked at Ginny then at Fred and George, who were howling with laughter and rolling on the floor. Ginny looked up at her now giant brothers.  
  
"Turn me back!" She squeaked. This caused Fred and George to start laughing even harder.  
  
"What's going on?" Molly said coming into the room. She saw an angry but extremely tiny Ginny sitting on the sofa. "FRED! GEORGE!" She bellowed. Fred and George stopped laughing immediately and ran from the room. Molly's shout caused Harry and Ron to walk into the room curiously.  
  
"Oh, what happened to Ginny?" Ron asked as he picked his sister up by the back of her shirt. He chuckled and turned to Harry. Ginny was waving her arms around wildly.  
  
"Lily, would you mind helping me quickly." Molly said to the door. Lily came in a moment later, tucking some hair behind her ear.  
  
"Oh, what happened?" Lily asked, picking Ginny up. Ginny looked at Lily like she was going to cry. Lily sighed. "Where are your sons? I need to find out what they did to Ginny" Lily said.  
  
"Gave Gin drink." Emma said, hugging her kitten tightly. Baloo gave a soft mew and Lily sighed.  
  
"Come on Ginny, lets take you into the kitchen" Lily sighed. She gave Molly a fairly long look. Molly shook her head and the women went into the kitchen so that Lily could prepare a potion to get Ginny back to normal

* * *

**A/N:-This update was specially for Kaylee who is going away for a while. What am i going to do without you to send all my writing to and to bug u with who i think you should get together and what i think you should do to your characters?? WHY!!!???**

**Ok, so no Sirius bashing for a while now. Everyone seemed a bit wierd about the whole sirius thing, so i chose another character, lol. Someone asked me for some more Fred and George as kids scenes and it seemed natural to me that they'd use the most gulliable simbling for their pranks...therefore they use Ginny (Who is 4 right now) Then KAylee said that they should throw Baloo out of the window....so they did...**

**Anyway, Jessie, Bo and Emma will be later in the story, like HArry's 7th year!! Anyway, next story line will revolve around Rhia....hears Rhiannon cheering in the background....It should be REALLY fun to write, coz Rhia is a wierd ass girl!**


	8. More Than Just A Dinner Invite

**More then just a dinner invite**

April fussed around the house like there was no tomorrow. Sirius watched her slightly worried. When she had gotten back from work she hadn't looked that well. April wasn't acting normally. Sirius walked up to her and held her by her shoulders. April looked at him.

"April calm down, it's only dinner with your parents" Sirius said.

"Yes I know." April said, "But Becky will also be there, and her husband, and her child." Sirius rolled his eyes.

"Why are you worried?" He asked.

"I don't know. I just feel a bit stressed out. I'm going to have too much free time now." April said. Sirius sighed and pulled April into a hug. He knew April loved her work and hated lying around. There were times when all she wanted to do was lie around but then everyone had those times.

"Just relax." Sirius said. He felt April relax slightly in his arms. "Ok" He said with a smile. He bent down and gave April a soft kiss. April came away smiling slightly.

"Ok, where are the kids?" April said, "RHIA! ORION!" There was a banging from above them and they could hear something banging down the steps. April and Sirius went into the hall and saw Orion attempting to slide down the steps.

"Hurry Orion." Rhia said as she ran past him. Orion scowled a cute little baby scowl and turned and climbed down the steps. April reckoned that when Sirius was Orion's age he would be exactly the same, both in looks in personality. That thought normally made April feel slightly nervous about the future. But Lily got the same when she looked at Harry and Jenny at Bo. Rhia stood at the bottom of the stairs and to attention.

"Mummy." She said. April looked at her slightly confused and Rhia grinned. "Love you." She said.

"What have you done this time?" April asked. Rhia shook her head. April didn't have time to check upstairs. She plucked Orion off the stairs and handed him to Sirius. Orion waved his limbs wildly like he was trying to swim in the air until Sirius put his arms around Orion. Orion grinned and began to tug at Sirius' hair.

"Come on." April said taking Rhia's hand.

* * *

"April, Sirius." Mr. Marsden said happily as he received his youngest daughter and her husband.

"Hi dad." April said kissing his cheek.

"GRANDDADDY!" Rhia screamed. She held her arms up and Mr. Marsden picked her up.

"My, you're getting heavy." He said. Rhia laughed and cuddled Mr. Marsden.

"Is Becky here?" April asked.

"Yes, she arrived earlier." He said. April turned and smiled at Sirius, who was trying to stop Orion from trying to grab a rather expensive ornament hanging on the wall. Sirius got out his wand and did a protection charm on the ornament then put Orion on the floor. Orion looked up at the adults. Mr. Marsden set Rhia down on her feet and Rhia ran up the stairs.

"Ok, well I think Becky and her husband are in the living room." Mr. Marsden said. April grinned and went into the living room. Her sister, Becky, had shorter blonde hair then April and she looked slightly darker then April. She was plying with a young boy, who sat on her lap grinning. He didn't look much older then about four. Her husband sat reading a newspaper and looking quite interested in it. April had only seen him once before and that was her sister's wedding. He had short light brown hair that was swept back smartly and he looked quite lean and strong but he wasn't as good looking as Sirius or even James or Remus.

"Hey Becky." April said. Becky looked at and grinned. Her eyes were a slightly different shade of brown to April's. Becky lifted the boy up and put him on the sofa. She got up and hugged her sister.

"Oh my god April, I haven't seen you in years."

"I know." April said.

"So where are your children, I've seen pictures but I want to see the real things." Becky said. April laughed and turned as Orion toppled through the door.

"I swear he still hasn't got the hang of walking." Sirius said picking Orion up. Orion was grinning wildly. When he saw Becky he looked at her in wonder, who was this woman who looked like his mum?

"Oh, hi Becky." Sirius said with a grin. Becky looked at him amused. When Sirius was at school almost everyone had been on the end of one of the marauder's pranks, including Becky. But Becky had also been Ellie Potter's best friend. She had lost contact with James since Ellie died but she remembered James and his best friend, none-the-less.

"Hello Sirius." Becky said. "April, Sirius, this is my husband Patrick." Patrick had put the newspaper down and was smiling at them. He got up and held out his hand. Sirius took it and smiled. "Patrick this is my sister and her husband."

"I've heard a lot about you two." He said with a smirk. He had a fairly strong American accent. April and Sirius looked at each other, not because of the accent but because of what he had said.

"Like what?" April asked suspiciously.

"Well, does the Marauders ring a bell?" Patrick asked. Sirius' grin grew so that it was stretching from one ear to the other.

"We're famous in America as well." Sirius said. He turned to April, "didn't I tell you we'd be famous?" April rolled her eyes and looked at the boy.

"Um, who's your, um, son." April asked, waving a hand at the boy. Becky smiled and picked him up.

"April, this is Nick." Becky said. Nick looked at April. He looked completely different to both Patrick and April. He had blond hair that had a slight tinge of ginger in it and shining blue eyes. He looked a bit thin but April could tell he was gaining weight. Nick cuddled Becky, clearly terrified of April and Sirius. Orion looked at him and held his hand out.

"Orion." He said copying the adults. Nick looked at him suspiciously. April raised an eyebrow and looked at Becky.

"He was found locked in a basement." Patrick said. "His parents had moved away and when the new occupants moved in they found him. We saw him and just had to adopt him." Patrick said. April knew that last sentence was what Becky would have said, it was probably where it had come from. Sirius' smile disappeared. He lowered his arms with Orion, so Orion was hanging closer to the floor.

"Woo!" Orion said.

"Really?" Sirius said, "People actually do that?" Patrick nodded.

"So, he might be a bit...shy." Becky said. April nodded.

"Um, is he alright?" April said. Suddenly she didn't really know what to say.

"Oh yes, he's fine, aren't you Nick?" Becky asked, looking at Nick. Nick smiled and hugged Becky. April and Sirius looked at each other speechless. They suddenly didn't know what to say. Becky and Patrick looked at each other as well.

"So, we hear you're pregnant again." Patrick said. Perfect ice breaker! April sighed.

"Yeah, I know." April said, "But so is he." She nodded to Sirius.

"You had to remind me. I was just ready to forget the morning sickness, I haven't felt ill since this morning!" Sirius said, sounding fed up. Becky tried not to laugh.

"Oh, you can laugh, everyone else has" Sirius said.

"Um, why are you pregnant?" Patrick asked hesitantly.

"April wanted revenge on me." Sirius said, "So she got Lily, her best friend, to steal a pregnancy bump from her work. Lily's a Healer and so she did, and now I'm pregnant and I've got to go through what April goes through for the next nine months."

"Right." Patrick said. April sat down and sighed.

"Merlin, I'm tired." April said. She gave Sirius an innocent smile.

"Well getting pregnant will do that to you." Becky said. She sat down next to April. Nick watched April suspiciously the whole time. "I still find it so funny how you've managed to keep a family, you couldn't even keep a goldfish when you were sixteen!" Becky said.

"People change." April muttered.

"Particularly her." Sirius said. He put Orion on the floor. Orion decided he was going to pretend to be a dog and started crawling around on all fours and gave a small bark. Sirius grinned.

"He's going to be like me." Sirius said gleefully.

"April, I don't envy you." Becky said to her younger sister. April gave her a long look.

"I'll go and see when dinner's going to be ready." Patrick said. He walked out of the room. Sirius sat in the empty chair and gave a sigh of relief.

"So how's the U S of A?" April asked. Becky smiled.

"Oh, it's great. We just moved into a bigger house." Becky said, "You should bring your children over one day, we have a huge garden and the kids will love the pool." Sirius sat up.

"Yeah, lets go to America!" Sirius said.

"When the baby's born." April said,

"What? But we have so much time to do what we want now." Sirius said. April rolled her eyes and shook her head. Becky laughed.

"As much as I hate to say it, Sirius does have a point." Becky said, "But you don't have to come. The house is open." She said. April smiled and nodded.

"Woof!" Orion barked. Becky turned to look at him.

"Ok, Orion?" She asked, looking at April. April nodded, "So where's Rhia?"

"AH!!" Came a scream from upstairs. The three adults in the room looked up. April and Sirius got up and rushed up the stairs. "GET OFF!! GET OFF!!" came Rhia's screams from April's old bedroom.

"Rhia!" Sirius asked. He tried to push the door open but it wouldn't budge. Sirius slammed into the door again, trying to knock it down.

"Rhia?" April called. Becky appeared behind them.

"AH!" Rhia screamed again.

"Rhia!" Sirius asked. There was a knocking and thudding against the door with more of Rhia's screams. April pulled Sirius out of the way and got out her wand.

"Reducto!" She screamed at the door. The door shattered as there was another scream from Rhia followed by a loud crack, like someone apparating. Rhia's screams stopped immediately.

"Rhia?" April asked running into the room.

"Shit." Sirius muttered as he walked further into the room. Rhia wasn't anywhere to be seen.

"Rhia!" April said more urgently. She looked at Sirius, Sirius looked around the room. Sirius turned into Padfoot. Becky started in surprise. Padfoot sniffed around then turned to April.

"Anything?" April asked anxiously. Padfoot hung his head. Padfoot turned back into Sirius and looked at April with a sad expression. April wiped her eyes and went to Sirius. Sirius let out a shaky breath and put his arms around April. Becky frowned.

"I'll go and tell mum and dad that, um...yeah." Becky turned and silently left April and Sirius.

"It's alright." Sirius said shakily.

"What if she's hurt Sirius!" April said. She glanced around the room again. "I mean, she could be-" April didn't want to think about it, she put her head against Sirius' shoulder and started crying. "We were right on the other side of the door!" April sobbed into his shoulder. Sirius tried to keep the horrid lump in his throat down. He could feel April getting heavier as her legs began to give way slightly. She couldn't believe she'd let her daughter get taken. She was just on the other side of the door! If she'd used her wand earlier! Sirius gently lowered the two of them to their knees and pulled April closer. He wanted to cry but he had to be strong for April. He felt some tears escaping his eyes and fall into April's hair.

"We'll find her-" Sirius just managed to get out. April started crying harder. Sirius kissed her forehead and held her tightly.

"What if-" April stammered, "What if they k-"

"April, don't think about it." Sirius said. Sirius was saying that but he was thinking the same thing as April. What if they hurt Rhia? What if she was killed? She was only three, too young for anything! Sirius stroked April's hair and kissed the top of her head as she leant against Sirius. Sirius felt like his stomach was empty and that there was a gaping hole in his body. It was like he was going to jump off a fifty meter cliff and onto some jagged rocks. He closed his eyes and tried to block all thoughts of what might happen to Rhia. He had been so stupid, hitting the door! He was a wizard, why was he banging against the door like a stupid muggle!

He let out a shaky breath and looked up as he heard someone approaching. Orion was standing in the doorway looking rather confused. Behind Orion were April's parents.

"April." April's mum said coming into the room. She went to April and Sirius and put a hand on April's back. April shrugged her mum's hand off and pressed herself against Sirius. April's mum looked at Mr. Marsden, a few tears glistening on her cheeks. He looked around the room.

"I don't understand how anyone could have gotten in without us knowing." He said uncertainly. His eyes were glistening slightly. April turned to glare at her father, her face was stained with tears, she stood up shakily.

"It doesn't matter how he got in!" She shouted, "He took my daughter!" April looked around the room, trying not to look at Sirius. He knelt on the floor helplessly. "She could be...be...he could have hurt her" April said heavily. She swallowed hard and turned to Sirius again. Sirius stood up and took April's hands.

"Maybe she's at home?" Sirius said. Trying to deny what happened. April nodded.

"Yeah. She's at home, she's just tucked in bed or trying to read. She's at home isn't she Sirius?" April asked him. She wanted Sirius to say yes but she didn't wait that long. She waited a few seconds before disappearing. Orion started in surprise, he hadn't be expecting that. He walked to Sirius and held Sirius' leg and tugged at Sirius' trousers to be picked up. Sirius bent down and picked him up. Orion looked at Sirius and put his hands on his dad's cheek.

"Wet?" Orion said confused. Sirius let out another shaky breath.

"I better follow April" Sirius said weakly. Mrs. Marsden nodded and gave Orion a quick kiss on the forehead. Sirius leaving was a silent affair. Orion had become rather subdued and cuddled Sirius the entire journey home. Sirius opened the door. None of the lights in the house were on and April's jacket had been discarded on the floor. Sirius felt butterflies developing in his stomach. He went slowly up the stairs. Orion yawned and seemed to nearly fall asleep in Sirius' arms so before Sirius did anything he put Orion to bed. Once that was complete he slowly walked to Rhia's open bedroom door. He walked in, fearing the worse.

"No, don't think like that." Sirius muttered to himself. "She's just tucked herself into bed and is fast asleep in her bed-" He walked in the room and looked at the bed. It was empty, Rhia's room hadn't been touched since they'd left. Sirius heard a sob and turned to see April sitting on the floor leaning against the wall.

* * *

Sirius slowly got off the bed. He had made sure he'd gotten April to sleep as soon as he'd found her in Rhia's room. It disturbed him that April was even crying in her sleep! Sirius had never known that April could be hurt so badly! Sirius leant over and kissed April gently on the lips before he turned away and picked up his baseball cap that Lily had bought him last year. He didn't want people to see that he himself had been crying. Where was Rhia? She couldn't be missing but she was! Sirius could hear Rhia screaming in his head, he'd never heard Rhia scream like that before either. It was like someone was ripping her apart-

"No!" Sirius snapped at himself. "Don't think like that." He had to keep telling himself that but the more he said that to himself, the more he thought about it. He stood at the front door deciding whether he should walk or apparate to Lily and James' house. He decided to walk, it would save him having to go over everything all over again. He put his hands into his pockets and walked to Lily and James' house. He could see it at the top of the hill. He walked slowly, and got there in a few minutes, a few minutes too soon in Sirius' opinion. He knocked on the door and waited for another few minutes. The hall light switched on and the door opened. James stood in the doorway yawning.

"Sirius? What are you doing here? It's gone midnight." He said. Sirius shrugged and pushed past James and into the house.

"Is it? I hadn't noticed." Sirius said. James looked at Sirius and frowned.

"Are you alright mate?" James asked. Sirius turned and looked around the hall, like the person who took Rhia could be hiding in James' house.

"Someone took Rhia." Sirius said glumly. James stopped in mid yawn.

"What?" He asked, he was fully awake now. Nothing like a kidnapping to get you awake, Sirius thought.

"Someone took Rhia at April's parent's house." Sirius said, his voice was shaking slightly. "We were at the house when we heard some screaming, it was Rhia screaming. It was like...like she was being tortured or something." Sirius finished weakly. James looked at Sirius.

"Why aren't you going to the Ministry!" James nearly shouted. "You should be there right now, go down there Sirius. Get Aurors on it or something!"

"I can't go to the Ministry because all they'll do is have some investigation that will take too long! It could be too late by then if Rhia isn't already d-" Sirius couldn't bring himself to say the word. There was the sound of movement from the floor above. Lily walked down the stairs looking rather tired.

"What on earth are you guys shouting about?" She asked, "Could you keep the volume down, you might wake up the kids." Sirius glared at her. How dare she rub it in! But then she didn't know about Rhia.

"Anyway, I just wanted to ask if Lily could check up on April a few times tomorrow. I need to go away." Sirius said.

"What?" James asked. "You can't go after those People, you don't even know where they are!" James said. Lily looked at them confused and stood next to James. She put her arms around him and looked at Sirius.

"What's happened? Is April alright?" Lily asked worriedly. She looked carefully at Sirius. She noticed his eyes were slightly red but didn't comment on anything.

"No she's not." Sirius snapped. Lily started slightly and James put his arm around her tighter.

"Look Sirius, go to the ministry, you're not going to be able to find Rhia any other way-"

"Wait!" Lily said, letting go of James, "Something's happened to Rhia?" Lily asked. She looked at Sirius. Sirius looked at her and then nodded.

"She was taken." Sirius said. Lily's mouth fell open. "April's a wreck. Don't tell her that I've gone to try and find Rhia." Sirius said as he head towards the door again. Lily wan between him and the door with his arms out.

"Honestly, Sirius, do what James suggests. I mean, look at how many times Harry's gone missing. The ministry has always found him and April and James are Aurors, they can get people working quickly. Sirius, this isn't the way you should be doing this" Lily said.

"Yeah, and there's a difference between Rhia and your son." Sirius said bitterly. "Rhia's not the Boy Who Lived." Sirius said, pushing Lily to the side slightly and then opening the door. Lily looked at James uncertainly. James shook his head and ran out of the door.

"Sirius!" James shouted as he followed his friend. "Sirius, listen to us. This isn't what you should be doing. Go to the ministry and report Rhia! For god's sake, you have no idea what the kidnappers what." Sirius stopped and turned to look at James.

"And why would they want anything?" Sirius asked. "What could we possibly have that they want."

"Sirius, think about it! Who's your wife?" James asked.

"April."

"And what do you know about her reputation?" James asked. Sirius looked at James for a moment.

"She's famous for catching the bad guy" He said quietly. "They hate her."

"Exactly, and who's your best friend's son?" James asked, in an even gentler tone.

"Harry Potter." Sirius said, "But why would they want Harry or April?"

"Sirius, you're not using your head. April hasn't wanted to tell you but the number of times she's nearly been killed because Death Eaters hate her. Anyone who's stupid enough to take Rhia will most definitely want to hurt April. Family is an Auror's weakness." James said.

"And Rhia's our eldest daughter." Sirius said, he looked at the floor.

"Yes, and April loves her just a little bit more then Orion."

"Or me." Sirius muttered. James smirked slightly.

"If you say so. Report it to the ministry and then stay at home, don't do anything stupid like go after them. If I'm right they'll send some kind of Hostage note or something." James said. Sirius looked like he could cry again but James knew that Sirius wouldn't cry.

"James, you didn't hear Rhia screaming." Sirius said, "We were right on the other side of the door!" He said quietly. James tensed slightly, he knew what he should do but he felt slightly awkward having to do it. James glanced around before giving Sirius a brotherly hug. They let go quickly though and faced each other.

"Sirius, stay at home and look after April." James said, "I'll go straight to the ministry and report the kidnapping ok." Sirius nodded. "Ok, good. I'll see you later." James disappeared with a crack, leaving Sirius in the street. Well, James had just talked Sirius out of going to almost certain death. Sirius turned to walk back to his house when an owl seemed to materialize out of the dark sky and dropped a letter into Sirius' hands. Sirius looked up but the owl disappeared. Sirius tore the seal open and read the letter in the dark, he could just make out the words.

**Don't worry, your daughter is safe. She will stay safe if you hand over Harry Potter. You have four days before she dies. If you accept the trade then say the following spell. _Acceptae_. Remember, four days.**

Sirius couldn't identify the writing at all. It was neat but wasn't like anyone's he knew. He put the letter to his nose and started to transform into Padfoot. He got about half way into the transformation when he picked up the smells of horses and general farm smells. He turned back into a human, a farm with horses? There were hundreds of places like that! He started to transform into a dog again. He let himself fully transform into Padfoot so that his senses were keener. He put his nose near the letter, which had dropped on the floor. He sniffed it and tried to ignore the usual smells around him. There were smells he recognised, they seemed very familiar, they reminded Sirius of his honeymoon when he and April had gone to-

Cadover Bridge in Dartmoor. Padfoot growled and picked up the letter in his teeth and ran to his house. He turned back into Sirius and pushed the letter through the letterbox before turning to the street, he was about to go when he turned and looked at the house. He apparated into the house, just outside his bedroom. He walked into his bedroom and knelt next to the bed and kissed April gently on the lips before leaving the bedroom. He closed the door gently and looked towards Orion's room. He could see Orion from where he was standing. Orion was fast asleep in his bed, his mouth open and a small dribble of saliva dripping down his cheek. Sirius smirked before apparating from the house.

* * *

**A/N:-Hot, right off the press. YEs, I know i haven't updated for a while but my frend stayed over for like 4 days so i wasn't able to write anything and i'm going round hers tomorrow so still no updating tomorrow. **

**Ok, if any of you think April and Sirius over reacted slightly....that's how i was told to write it. I did have it differently but Kaylee (sweetest-sin980) told me that parents would react differently, she has her reasons for telling me and I'm quite pleased with how I have done the chapter though i don't really truly know how April and Sirius should react, seeing as I've never had my oldest daughter being abducted....because i'm only 17 and don't have a daughter, if i did i'd be very worried about myself! coz i don't even have a boyf! anyway, yeah, but my sister did used to go missing a lot when she was younger and my parents did kinda react a little like this so i've done it like that. **

**Sirius...he'll never learn to follow orders. Ok, so i think i've layed off the Sirius-bashing thing for a while. He's going to be brave but stupid for a while, i think. I haven't planned the next chapter fully yet. I have a April/Lily/JAmes moment planned (in the non romance sense) and a few other little things for the next chapter, give me a while to write it...and i will love you people forever....There is probs gonna be a chapter all about Bo later as well, i think the stoylines are going round in many circles at the moment. need more storylines for Bo, Jenny and Remus, so if you have any...PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE tell me!! I'm going to see how long i can make this story before i have to write HArry's 6th and 7th year....Jessie, your moment will come. Kaylee, Jessie.....stop confusing me...if you don't get it it's a joke between us.**


	9. Finding Rhia

**Finding Rhia**

April went to the fridge and leaned against it. Everything looked so boring and hopeless. She got out some milk and put it on the kitchen counter. She got out a glass and poured herself some milk. She put the milk back and then picked up the glass. She returned to her bedroom and got back in the bed. Where was Sirius? He should be here, unless he'd gone to talk to the ministry. April made a mental note to go to the ministry and then to visit Lily and James but promptly forgot it. She wanted her daughter here. She hadn't gone missing. She was somewhere, she was just hiding. April was trying to deny everything. She set the glass on the bedside table and put her face in her hands. She couldn't think of anything but how much of an idiot she had been. She could have stopped it, she was powerful enough, she was strong and skilled enough but apparently not quick enough, she'd let Rhia down.

"This must have been how Lily and James felt." April muttered to herself. Lily had tried to explain the feeling she got when she saw Harry's scar but April had never been able to understand until now.

"Mummy." Came a small voice. April looked up and saw Orion standing next to the bed. Orion grinned. "Orion sweep with mummy?" Orion said. April leant over and picked up Orion and set him on her legs. Orion slid down April's legs and landed on her stomach.

"Good morning Orion." April said glumly, she tried to be happy, for Orion's sake but she couldn't be happy.

"Where Rhia?" Orion asked. "Rhia here." Orion said pointing at the bed. April guessed he was trying to say that Rhia was usually asleep in April's bed. Rhia often climbed into the bed and wedged herself between April and Sirius. April felt tears again.

"R-Rhia's gone out with Daddy." April said slowly, "So that mummy can spend some time with Orion." Orion looked at her vaguely confused. He hadn't understood all of that. "Mummy, spend time with you." April said flicking Orion's nose gently. Orion laughed and caught April's finger. April managed a very weak smile. She picked up her glass of milk and started drinking some. Wait a minute, why was she drinking milk? She never drank milk! April slowly put the drink down. Orion watched her and then shifted slightly. He pressed his index finger against April's forehead.

"What are you doing?" April asked, lowering Orion's hand. Orion smiled and pressed his other index finger against April's forehead. "Orion!" April said. Orion grinned and poked April in the stomach. "Stop it Orion." April said poking a finger gently against Orion's side. Orion laughed and tried to bat his mum's hands away but April kept poking him gently until he was laughing so much he fell off April and crawled under the duvet. April was actually laughing with Orion and was about to search for him when she head a click. Her laughed and temporary happiness evaporated and she reached for her wand. The door opened slightly and April held her wand tightly.

"Stay where you are." April said dangerously.

"April it's me." Lily said as she came into the room. April narrowed her eyes.

"How do I know it's you?" April asked.

"Would anyone else know about your love for ginger biscuits and chocolate ice cream?" Lily asked with a soft smile as she produced a white plastic carrier bag. April lowered her wand.

"What are you doing here?" April asked as she put her wand back onto the bedside table and stuck her arm under the duvet. She managed to find Orion's leg and pulled him out from under the duvet, he was laughing hysterically. Lily walked around the bed and sat on the bed next to April.

"Sirius told us about Rhia. James ahs gone to the ministry and the kids are at Jenny's. Jenny is going to come in a little bit. Once Remus wakes up." Lily said. She was looking at April, who was trying to flatten Orion's hair. She was deliberately not looking at Lily.

"Thanks, but what are you doing here?" April asked.

"I wanted to be here for my best friend and sister." Lily said, "Is that a crime?" Lily asked April.

"No, I suppose not." April muttered. Lily sighed and got out the contents of her plastic bag. A small tub of chocolate ice cream and a packet of Ginger biscuits. April eyed them gratefully and received a poke from Orion.

"Orion!" April snapped. Orion started then gave April an innocent smile. "Lily, I'm really grateful that you've come but this isn't like at school where I broke up with boyfriends or what ever." April said, looking towards Lily. Lily looked at her slightly annoyed.

"April, I understand you've lost your daughter. I've lost my son so many times I'm starting to lose count. I'm trying to help you, just to ease any pain that you're feeling, particularly after Sirius ra-" Lily frowned and changed what she was going to say, "ranted about how he felt useless." Lily ended feebly. April's gaze snapped straight to Lily.

"What did Sirius do?" April asked, "Where is he?"

"He-I-He's here isn't he?" Lily asked.

"Lily, you can't lie to me." April said. Lily could feel April searching her mind.

"Alright, alright." Lily said looking away. "He took off during the night." Lily said weakly.

"What!" April asked, "First Rhia and now Sirius? What did I do?"

"Nothing." Lily said, she looked at April and put her arm around her and let April rest her head on Lily's shoulder. "He's gone to look for Rhia." April sat up carefully.

"What? Why?" April asked. She looked close to tears...again, "I need him here." She said, "I need him, why's he left me?"

"He hasn't left you but he's gone to go and find his daughter." Lily said awkwardly. April looked at Lily. Lily promptly closed her eyes.

"What else are you hiding from me Lily?" April asked.

"There was a note from the people who took Rhia." Lily said, "Harry in exchange for Rhia. Dumbledore's looking at the letter to see if he can identify the handwriting" Lily said extremely quickly.

"You're kidding." April asked seriously. "Harry for Rhia?" Lily cringed and nodded and got a ginger biscuit out.

"I know, it's unfair." She said, opening up the tub of ice cream and dipping the biscuit into the ice cream. Lily had started off hating this 'comfort food' as April had once put it but after thirteen years of eating it every time April got annoyed, she'd learned to use it as comfort food as well. It was weird and unusual but it seemed to work for April and Lily. Lily ate the bit of biscuit with ice cream on.

"What's James said?" April asked.

"He just went to work." Lily said glumly. "I went to see Dumbledore and he's trying to think of a solution. I suppose we could go and try and find Sirius but the chances of finding one man in the whole of the UK is highly unlikely." Lily said. "When Jenny comes we're going to go and try and see if we can do anything. April, here." Lily handed a ginger biscuit to April, who was looking at her hands. Orion had long since crawled off her and was looking through some of the draws in the room. April took the biscuit and ate it.

"I'm not going to ask what happened." Lily said gently.

"Why would anyone want to take Rhia though? Just to get to Harry? I don't understand it Lily." April said.

"You're human." Lily said.

"No, I'm an Auror! I'm supposed to understand but I don't!" April said closing her eyes. "I'm supposed to know what to do and don't." April cried, "I don't even understand how I managed to sleep, I'm so worried."

"And it's only natural." Lily said, she was trying not to cry herself. "And you went to sleep because you're tired. April, you have a baby growing inside you, you're going to be more tired then usual. It's a good job you did get some sleep. Sirius looked knackered when I saw him last night." Lily said. She hugged April tightly. "It's ok. I'll stay with you while Sirius isn't here." Lily said. April nodded and hugged Lily tightly, Lily seemed to be like a source of comfort that was consistent, she knew what to say, she knew what to do, everything one would expect from a sister like figure. Lily let go of April, a few tears down her cheek.

"Now, how about a biscuit?" She asked. April smiled slightly and nodded.

"Thanks." April said.

* * *

Jenny stood outside April's bedroom door as Lily came out holding Orion.

"How is she?" Jenny asked.

"Asleep." Lily said.

"How could she sleep with all this happening?" Jenny asked. Lily got out her wand and waved it slightly.

"A simple drowsiness spell. It's not as effective as a sleeping potion, but it's really effective when it's used on pregnant women." Lily said. Jenny nodded and went to the door and peeked into the room. April was fast asleep in the bed, though Jenny couldn't actually see April's face her blonde head wasn't moving.

"Alright, but what are we going to do?" Jenny said. Lily shrugged.

"You're the smart one." Lily said. Jenny gave Lily a slightly annoyed look.

"I'm the smart one?" Jenny asked. "Name one smart decision I've ever made in my life." Lily sighed.

"You married Remus, you fought against your overpowering narrow minded father you-"

"And compare them to the bad choices" Jenny said. Lily thought for a moment.

"You ran away, you told us you were dead, you came back with a werewolf baby, you-" Jenny put a hand over Lily's mouth

"Ok, Lily, I didn't need you to say it out loud." Jenny said. "I don't need to be reminded of my stupid past."

"We all have something to be ashamed of." Lily said.

"Name one thing you were ashamed of?" Jenny asked. Lily stayed silent. "I rest my case, now you decide, what are we going to do?" Lily looked at Orion.

"What do you think?" She asked Orion. Jenny was convinced that Lily's brain had finally blown a circuit.

"Play." Orion said. Lily nodded.

"And that's what we'll do." Lily said, looking at Jenny.

"Are you ok?" Jenny asked. Lily shook her head.

"Brain's gone." Lily said, "All this business over the past few weeks is just overloading my brain. Thankfully I was given a week of last minute holiday. I applied, explained the circumstances and the Hospital gave me the week off." Lily said. Jenny sighed. "I'll look after April for a while." Lily shook her head.

"April wants me near her twenty four seven." Lily said.

"Ok, you sort out Orion and I look over April?" Jenny asked. Lily nodded.

"I can cope with that." Lily said. "Oh, there's some ginger biscuits and ice cream in there if you want any." Lily said as she walked down the stairs.

"You two and your strange food." Jenny said.

"Oh, you know you love it to." Lily said. Jenny shook her head in amusement and went into April's bedroom while Lily went into the living room to look after Orion.

* * *

Padfoot sniffed the floor, he couldn't smell anything that was strikingly familiar. In other words, he couldn't smell Rhia. He was at Cadover bridge. A small stream ran past him under a bridge, the stream was blocked off slightly by several people's attempts to dam it with rocks from the bottom of the stream. Padfoot could see kids swimming in the stream now and could see young teenagers trying to dam up the bridge, it was never going to work though. Padfoot went down to the water. He'd been walking all around the area all day. He'd looked in the china clay mine, just over the hill and several miles near by. But he still had to go into the open moor. There were several broken down stone age buildings around there. He vaguely remembered a wizarding building nearby, but where nearby? He just couldn't remember where exactly.

He had to get Rhia. Not only was she his daughter, his eldest daughter. But also, it would finally show April that he could be responsible for the children. He needed to be given the chance to show that he could do something right. Sirius tried to keep his mind focused as he walked down to the stream. He put his mouth near the water and starting lapping up some water.

"Look, Mummy, it's a big black doggy!" said a young girl loudly. Padfoot looked up and at the girl. She has the same dark blonde hair as Rhia, she looked slightly older and had lighter eyes then Rhia but other then that...

"Stay away from the dog, Katie, it might bite you." Said a worried mother. Padfoot looked away and lapped up a little bit more water before walking away over a small stone bridge over a small stream from the Clay mines and then into the open moor. Padfoot decided to jog slightly and went down the footpath at a slight jog. His ears were alert and he sniffed the air non stop, trying to get a whiff of his daughter. The slightest scent. Padfoot sniffed the air again. He could smell people coming his way. He jumped off the path and crouched low in a clump of grass so that he was hidden. He waited as two people, a man and a woman came towards him on the path. The man didn't look that great, he had smart brown hair and he was wearing a baggy shirt and what looked like some rather strange looking suit trousers. Padfoot moved his head towards them and tried to hear more carefully.

"-I don't agree with it. There must be better ways of getting what you want. And someone else to look after the child!" Said the woman. The man stopped the woman.

"You're not backing out now?" He asked, "We've been asked to do this."

"You've been asked to do this. You dragged me into it." The woman asked. "Who is asking us to do this. You don't tell me anything. I don't even know if the child is good or not, and quite frankly she reminds me of a girl I used to know at school" The man looked at her with a sympathetic look.

"Just look after her for a while, until we get what we want, I know they won't refuse the offer." The man said, pulling the woman into a hug. Padfoot raised his head slightly, a child? Could that be Rhia. He tried to get a smell off them but they were downwind to him, he'd have to get nearer. He slowly inched out of his hiding space and began to walk around the couple.

"I don't think they'll exchange-" The woman started to say but the man silenced her.

"No, they will accept it, trust me." The man said. The woman looked at him with a slight look of contempt. Padfoot managed to get slightly downwind when the woman's eyes widened and she took a step back. The man turned around and got out a thin stick of wood.

"Louise, get behind me." He said. He held his wand out and pointed it at Padfoot. Padfoot stared at him and growled slightly. They were wizards, no doubt about it. The child they were referring to, Rhia possibly? Padfoot didn't know. He inched forwards.

"Jack, do something." The woman said as she held onto the back of the man's shirt.

"Expelliarmus." The man named Jack said. Padfoot jumped out of the way and skip to a stop on the dry earth. He turned to the couple and started running towards them barking as he did so. Jack threw various spells at Padfoot, but he managed to dodge them all. He jumped at Jack but the man ducked and Padfoot crashed into the woman, Louise. Louise screamed slightly and got out her own wand.

"Stupefy" She shouted. The spell just missed Padfoot. Padfoot glanced at the man, he was getting up. He jumped off Louise and turned into Sirius. Sirius roughly pulled Louise to her feet and grabbed her wand. He tucked it into the waistband of his jeans and got out his own wand. He pointed the end at Louise's throat. The man stood up and jumped in surprise when he saw Sirius standing there with Louise a bit stuck.

"Who do you work for?" Sirius asked

"Where did you come from?" Jack asked.

"I'm asking the questions here." Sirius said. He pressed the wand against Louise's throat a bit harder, he knew himself that he wouldn't seriously hurt her but if he needed to, he would. "Answer my question!" Sirius shouted at the man. Louise winced slightly as Sirius unintentionally pressed the wand harder against her skin. The man frowned.

"I work for my master." He said.

"And that is?" Sirius asked. Jack frowned.

"Tell him Jack!" Louise screamed at him. Jack scowled.

"I can't." He said before disapparating with a crack.

"Dammit!" Sirius said throwing Louise to the floor. "Dammit!" He said. He started kicking the dirt. Louise put a hand to her throat and watched Sirius kicking the dirt and letting out shouts until he kicked a particularly large rock. He let out a stream of Muggle swear words and hopped on one foot for a moment. She waited until he'd calmed down a bit and sat on a mound of grass before she stood up. Sirius watched her keenly as she stood up. His wand ready in his hand.

"You wouldn't have hurt me would you?" Louise asked. Sirius scowled.

"Maybe." He muttered. Louise gave him a knowing smile and offered her hand to him.

"Louise Lovegood." She said. "That was my brother, he wanted me to get involved with some group of his. They need a baby sitter for some kid they've got but I've got my own daughter to look after." Sirius looked at her suspiciously. "I swear I won't hurt you." Sirius took her hand and Louise pulled Sirius to his feet.

"Sirius Black." He muttered. Louise let out a slight gasp. "What?"

"Aren't the Blacks Evil?" She asked.

"Not all of us are. I'm one of the exceptions." Sirius muttered. He got out Louise's wand and handed it over to her. "Here, I suppose you won't hurt me." Louise took her wand back and tucked it behind her ear. Sirius raised an eyebrow at that.

"It's a convenient place to keep my wand. I have to hide it usually but seeing as you're a wizard-" Louise looked at Sirius curiously. "You're an animagus?" Sirius nodded. Louise shook her head with a smile. "Fascinating, my husband would be fascinated by that. He loves to enquire into the weird, there aren't many animagus's around. You wouldn't be interested in giving him an inter-"

"No." Sirius said firmly. "I will not give an interview. What does this kid look like? The one you have to look after?" Sirius asked. Louise twisted her mouth slightly and thought for a moment.

"Hmm..." Louise said, "I only got a glimpse of her really. Blonde hair, about three, maybe four, I don't know." She looked at Sirius and then squinted slightly as she looked into his eyes. Sirius tensed and took a step back uncertainly. "She had your eyes." Louise said. Sirius put a hand to his face before he hurriedly looked for a wallet that he carried around with him to hold the Muggle money that him and April had to keep just in case. He rummaged through it and pulled out a wizarding photo of Rhia. He gave it to Louise.

"Is this her?" Sirius asked. Louise looked at the photo and nodded.

"Yes, exactly her. Apparently the people there are trying to trade her for Harry Potter. I really don't think that...wait a minute, are you the girl's older brother?" She asked.

"No dad." Sirius said.

"Really? You look more like an older brother then a dad. Wow, you must be young." Louise said. He was smiling slightly, pleased that someone thought he was so young. "Anyway, your daughter, she's being kept in some building a little way off. She's not being guarded heavily, she is just a toddler but-"

"Has she been hurt? She's still alive isn't she?" Sirius asked anxiously.

"Yes she is alive but-"

"But what? What's happened to her?" Sirius asked.

"If you'll just let me finish." Louise said patiently. "But she is hurt quite badly. I don't know exactly how bad her condition is but from what my brother has told me they've used an unforgiv-"

"What!" Sirius asked. "You have to take me to her now! If she's so badly injured. Oh shit." Sirius said. An unforgivable curse? What if they're used Avada Kedavra, wait, no. Louise had said she was alive which meant that they hadn't used that curse. Which left the imperius and Cruciatus curse. Sirius didn't even want to think about it. Who would use one of those curses on a three year old?

"Sit down." Louise said. "You'll hurt yourself"

"I've already hurt myself." Sirius said, "I kicked a damn rock!" Louise made Sirius sit down on the mound of grass again. Sirius put his head in his hands.

"I'm a bad father, I can't believe I let Rhia get hurt. I'm a bad father." Louise sighed and sat down next to Sirius.

"I'm sure you're not a bad father." Louise said, "I'm sure they took your daughter without you knowing, you couldn't have stopped them. And if it helps I'll accept the position and try and get your daughter out." Louise said.

"No, I have to do this on my own." Sirius said, "I've got to get Rhia out on my own or April will never trust me again. You don't understand, since I dropped Rhia when she was like, six months old April hasn't trusted me with anything to do with the kids." Sirius said. Louise nodded and let him talk. "I really want to help but since school, she's really changed since school. She used to be all carefree and everything, she used to help me get into trouble. And now...all she wants to do is work and raise the children, it seems like she wants to do that on her own." Sirius sighed as he put his chin in the palm of his right hand. "Then Rhia was kidnapped, once she was asleep, I almost had to force her to sleep, she's so upset and worried about her, but once I got her to sleep I saw this as an opportunity to prove myself. You know, to show her she could trust me."

"What does April do?" Louise asked.

"She's an auror." Sirius asked.

"Wait, is this April Marsden, Becky Marsden's baby sister?" Louise asked.

"Little, not baby." Sirius corrected. "Do you know her?"

"I vaguely know Beck Marsden." Louise said. "But carry on if you want to."

"Oh yeah, so I have to do this to prove to April that I can look after the children myself." Sirius said.

"And you think trying to save Rhia and leaving April will help?" Louise asked. Sirius looked at Louise. He noticed that her eyes stuck out slightly and she seemed to look slightly surprised about something.

"Um...yeah, but it's not like April will miss me much, she's always throwing me out of the house anyway." Sirius muttered. Louise frowned.

"Well do you want my help?" Louise asked. "I think it's wrong to bargain a child. It is using the wrong morals and principles. If they just asked then maybe but not take a child." Louise said. Sirius looked at her slightly confused.

"They want my best friend's son." Sirius said slowly.

"Oh yes, Harry Potter, I forgot about him." Louise said. "Well, lets get your daughter out, the sooner she's out the sooner April will be happy with you and the sooner I can get to my own daughter and start experimenting with this idea I was playing with before my brother came."

"You are completely mad, you know that?" Sirius said.

"My husband said that." Louise said. "But then he should know, he believes in the crumple horned snorkack." She said rolling her eyes. Sirius nodded his head slowly, what the hell was a crumple horned whatsit? He felt anxious and nervous but at least Rhia was alive. That was enough consolation for Sirius to get him through the moment. Try not to think about her being hurt. Next step was to get Rhia out of there alive.

* * *

April couldn't sleep that night. She missed Sirius, she missed Rhia. She was worried sick about both of them, and when she said worried sick, she'd been sick all evening. The stress, anxiety and the damned baby. Lily and James were looking after Orion for April but the house was too quiet. It was scary. Why was April so scared? She was an auror, she was never scared, why was she so scared now?

April got up and picked up her wand and closed her eyes. She was finding it more difficult to apparate now. That was a bad sign for her because it really struck April that she was pregnant. April appeared in Lily and James' bedroom. Lily was cuddled up against James. Lily looked up tiredly, James peering over his bare chest. Lily clutched the duvet close to her and sat up slightly. April felt slightly wrong about waking Lily up. She'd been nothing but kind to her all day. She was probably more tired then April was.

"April?" Lily asked tiredly. "What are you doing here?" James rolled over and put his arms around Lily's waist tightly. She put a hand on his back and shook her head slightly.

"I got a bit scared." April said with a slight frown. Lily scowled and reached onto the floor and picked up a shirt. James didn't seem to want her to move at all and was pulled along with Lily as Lily leant over. It was all rather amusing and April would have laughed if she hadn't felt so depressed.

"James." Lily said quietly. James let out a moan and held Lily tighter. Lily pulled the shirt on and pushed James. "James, get up." She said.

"Why?" He muttered.

"Get out of bed." Lily said. James sat up tiredly and looked at Lily.

"What?" James asked. His hair was more then messy, his head appeared to lose all shape. He looked at Lily slightly confused. Lily beckoned April to come over.

"April's sleeping with me tonight, you're on the sofa." Lily said. She leaned over to James and pressed a kiss on his lips. James grumbled and got out from under the covers. April was half expecting him to be naked but he was wearing some boxers. He picked up a shirt on the way out.

"Sirius was right, you are lesbians." He muttered as he left the room. Lily smirked slightly and moved over for April.

"You really didn't have to." April muttered.

"Get in." Lily said. "Before I get James back and you sleep on the sofa." April got under the duvet and Lily pulled her into a hug.

"I'm really scared Lily. What if Rhia isn't alive? And Sirius has gone after her and-" April started to say. Lily put a hand over April's mouth.

"Don't think about it. It'll only make it worse." Lily muttered as she settled back into the bed again.

"But if I don't think about it and Rhia really is hurt." April said, she looked at Lily. She was half asleep already. Lily sighed and put her arms around April.

"Whatever has happened, Sirius will find her. I can promise you that, he can look after himself and Rhia. April you have to trust him this time. He'll find her. James has done everything he can at the ministry and I have the people at St. Mungos on alert and they'll owl me as soon as Rhia or Sirius come in."

"What about if they're found somewhere else?"

"Remus is keeping an eye and ear out on the Muggle side of things and Jenny is doing all she can" Lily muttered with a yawn. April nodded. She could feel sleep coming on. "You're safe here." Lily said. April rolled over and Lily let her put her head on Lily's shoulder as April fell into a rather uneasy sleep.

* * *

**A/N:-HEYA!!! Howz u all doing today? I'm in a really wierd mood.....as per usual, I'm already getting sick of this story line, i have to keep making up Villains and I want to get to when all the kids are older and when April has her baby!! and I want to write a moment between Remus and Jenny but no..I have to tie up this storyline and I keep making it more difficult for myself....grrr. Anywayz, nothing much has happened except me writing frantically to try and keep up with this story. God, I hate it! Not really but it's taking up a lot of time, at least i'm about 2 chapters ahead now. Oh, has anyone watched the girl next door? Isn't Matthew FIT!! and his friends are just plain funny!! one leg of a tripod...haha. Anyway, I'll leave you to do** **what you want now. Loving you all.**

**Oh by the way, the picture of Emma Potter is up on my website. I can't remember the direct link but if you go to **** then click on _Photos _then _my pictures_ then you should find it there. It'll be the only one that''s not like a baner or an icon. Hopefully you'll like it. I personally think it's alright but i could have done better. Anyway, again....toodles**


	10. Trusting Sirius

**Trusting Sirius**

Sirius waited anxiously for Louise to turn up. She'd told him she'd meet him at about ten the next morning. He waited at the waiting place as he looked around. He just wanted to get Rhia and get the hell out of this place. He was never going to return here. Not after what Rhia might have gone through. Merlin, he hoped Rhia was ok. That she wasn't too badly hurt. If she was he'd never let himself live it down. He didn't know if he could live with that.

Someone cleared their throat out behind Sirius. Sirius turned to see Louise standing behind him.

"Good morning Sirius." She said happily. "Lets go and get your daughter shall we?" She said.

"Um, yeah of course." Sirius said.

"Now, if you don't mind could you become the dog for a while. I think they may get suspicious if I walked in with a human." Louise said.

"Yes, of course, I'll change into Padfoot when we're a bit further away from the Muggles."

"Oh yes, the Muggles." Louise said. "Well, we mustn't let them see you must we?" Sirius looked at Louise slightly confused. "Come on." They started walking down the path that Sirius had seen Louise and her brother walking down the previous day. They'd spent the last day perfecting their plan. As soon as Sirius was out of sight from anyone but Louise he turned into Padfoot.

"You are quite cute as a dog." Louise said.

i I know, it's why many people fall for me. Now can we please get my daughter out of the hell hole they have her in /i said Sirius' voice. It filled Louise's head.

"Fascinating." She muttered, "Are you sure you don't want to talk to my husband?"

i Louise please! /i Sirius said desperately. Louise nodded.

"Oh yes, follow me, it's just down here. There's this rock that will open up if you say the password or something. Then you walk down a dark corridor that'll lead to a system of underground caves that's been carved out of the granite." Louise said. Padfoot walked anxiously next to her, his tail not wagging as much as usual. They walked in silence for a few moments. They passed a few Dartmoor ponies that eyed Padfoot wearily and walked off towards the stream. There were few birds around and Padfoot caught the whiff of a Rabbit somewhere. After about half an hour of walking Louise suddenly turned off the path and walked towards a fairly large hill. It was called a Tor and had a large pile of granite rocks on it. It was actually one large rock but from a distance it looked like someone had just placed a few rocks there and walked off. They came to the top of the Tor, Padfoot panting slightly. Louise wasn't the least bit exhausted. How did she manage it? Padfoot thought. She went to a fairly flat piece of Granite.

Wait a minute, what if this was a trap? Sirius through, could he really trust Louise, he barely knew her. But he'd come this far, he might as well carry on. Butterflies began to develop in Padfoot's stomach, could dogs even feel nervousness? Evidently they could. Padfoot looked up at Louise. She looked at the rock.

"Mosmordre" She said sombrely. The rock moved aside with a grating sound and revealed a tunnel that fell into a fairly steep slope. Louise stepped into it and Padfoot followed. She was holding her wand anxiously.

i So who exactly are keeping Rhia? /i Sirius asked.

"I'll tell you later." Louise breathed so that no other human could hear. Padfoot gave a slight nod and fell in behind Louise. They went down another corridor, this one was flat and veered to the right slightly. There was a man in a dark robe looking at Louise.

"Who are you?"

"Louise Lovegood, I'm here to look after the child." She said, "You know the little girl who-"

"Alright, yeah. What's the dog doing here?"

"Oh, he's my pet. I thought he might comfort the girl slightly. He has wonderful calming effects on my own daughter." Louise said nonchalantly. How did she do it? Padfoot thought. Louise didn't seem to have many cares at all. The man in the robes nodded and stepped aside, letting Louise and Padfoot passed.

i First one down /i Padfoot thought. Louise smirked slightly. They walked past many other Death Eaters, only getting a slight look because Louise was a woman. They came to a door after another five minutes. Louise danger her fist on it and waited a while. The door was pulled open. It sounded heavy and there was a slight grating sound as the door scraped across the door. There was just more of a crack for Louise and Padfoot to squeeze through.

"Ah, mrs. Lovegood." Came a slimy sounding voice that made Padfoot give a dog like cough. "I wasn't expecting you to bring your pet dog." Louise gave a polite smile.

"Well, he calms the children." Louise said.

"Ah yes. Of course. That brat is constantly crying. I've had to stun her a few times. She's currently stunned." Padfoot started growling. He was using all his will power not to attack the man.

"Down Snuffles. Sit." Louise said sternly. Padfoot sat down nut continued to growl. The man, who was wearing a hooded cloak seemed to inch away from Padfoot. "Where is the child?" Louise asked.

"She is through that door. Keep that dog in that room while you are here, we do not want it causing trouble."

"Snuffles will be no trouble, come snuffles." Louise said. Padfoot stood up and followed Louise into a small room with a oak door. Louise had to use her wand to open it. Once in she closed the door and conjured a small flame on the floor. "Ok, it's all clear." She said. Padfoot quickly turned into Sirius. He got out his wand and looked around frantically. Where was Rhia? Where was she?! There was a small bundle of blankets in the corner on the floor that was moving slightly. Sirius ran over and pulled some of the blankets off. He knew it was Rhia by a few strands of Blond hair that poked out from under the blankets. He uncovered the three year old. She looked quite weak, after only two days. She looked like she'd cried a lot and there were cuts and scratches over her body. There was a particularly large cut across her chest, that was slightly exposed. Sirius picked up the unconscious Rhia and held her delicately in his arms.

"Ennervate." He said gently. Rhia's head moved slightly and she began to whimper. "Sh, Rhia, it's me. It's your daddy." Sirius said rocking her slightly. Rhia's eyes opened slightly and then she started crying.

"Daddy." She whimpered. She tried to move her arms but her right arm wasn't really moving. Sirius touched her arm gently and she began crying even harder. "Daddy, hurts!" She cried. Sirius moved her slightly and held her closely.

"It's alright, Daddy won't let anyone else hurt you." Sirius said. Rhia put her head against Sirius' shoulder. Sirius held his daughter tightly, tears falling down his cheeks. Louise stood in the corner watching silently.

"It's alright, Daddy will take you home now and never let anything happen to you." Sirius whispered to Rhia.

"Want go home." Rhia whined. Sirius turned to Louise.

"How can I ever thank you?" He said to Louise. Louise simply smiled.

"You don't need to thank me. There's still one more bit to do then we're safely out, though I would like it if you could maybe give my family a little protection as I'm sure after this they'll all be after me" Louise said. "It seems that the Death Eaters keep losing children from right under their noses." She said with a slight smirk. Sirius grinned as best he could while crying slightly. He was reunited with Rhia. Yes she was hurt but she was alive and she wasn't hurt too seriously.

"Of course, just give me an hour or so to talk to some people then you'll have all the protection you need and want." Sirius said. Louise smiled and got out a small stone she'd picked up outside. She pointed her wand at it.

"Portus" She said. The stone shook slightly and glowed blue. Rhia had stopped sobbing slightly to watch what was happening. The stone went back to normal and Louise held it out.

"Rhia, try and touch the stone." Sirius said.

"Arm hurt." Rhia said, pouting slightly and trying to raise one of her arms. Sirius frowned and looked at Louise. He put his hand on it as well and they raised the stone to Rhia's arm. They touched the stone against the skin of her arms and suddenly everything seemed to disappear. There was a tugging sensation at the navel and Sirius tried to turn to look at Rhia but he couldn't. He wasn't sure if Rhia was crying or not. The tugging sensation ended and Louise, Sirius and Rhia found themselves standing in front of young Harry and Emma. They were looking up in surprise. Emma let out a scream and Harry tried to clamp his hand over her mouth. Rhia began to cry again as her body began to hurt her.

"Sh, Emma it's me." Sirius said. There was some running from further in the house and Lily appeared in the doorway.

"What's all this noi-" Lily's eyes widened when she saw Sirius and Rhia. "Sirius! Rhia!" She moved to hug them but Sirius turned so that she couldn't touch Rhia.

"She's badly hurt, don't touch her Lily." Sirius said dangerously. Lily put her hands up and stepped away.

"Do you know how worried you've made us all. April's a near emotional wreck, James is worried sick and everyone's searching for you. Where did you find Rhia?" Lily asked. She looked at Rhia. She looked as though she wanted to hold her but Sirius was in the way.

"Louise helped me find her." Sirius said, nodding to Louise, who stood in silence holding the stone. Harry took the stone off her and tossed it around in his hands. Lily looked at her seriously at first then smiled.

"Thank you so much." Lily said. Louise smiled slightly.

"It wasn't a problem." Louise said. Lily smiled and then turned to Sirius. She got her wand out.

"Here, let me help you." Lily said. She pointed her wand at Rhia but she screamed even louder and pressed herself against Sirius.

"Rhia, it's ok. It's just Lily." Sirius said. Rhia looked at Lily fearfully and turned her head. She pressed herself against Sirius as tightly as she could without the use of her arms.

"Rhia, please let me just heal your arms." Lily begged the three year old.

"No!" Rhia screamed, "You hurt!" She shouted. Lily looked at her in surprise.

"What?" She asked

"You hurt me!" She cried. "said cruso." Lily's eyes widened and she looked at Sirius

"I have to heal her though. She looks as though she's dislocated her arms." Lily said. Sirius nodded.

"Rhia, can you be a good girl for me?" Sirius asked Rhia. Rhia looked at Sirius. She was still crying. "I know you are hurt and you may feel more hurt but let Lily hurt you one more time and then all the hurts will be gone." Sirius said. Rhia's lips trembled and she looked at Sirius then to Lily. She tried to put on a brave face and nodded slightly. Sirius looked at Lily. Lily got out her wand and flicked her wrist. Rhia let out the loudest scream she'd ever screamed as her arms popped back into place. Lily said a few more incantations and spells and the cuts on Rhia's body were healed. Rhia put her arms around Sirius' neck and cried even more.

"I think you should go and see April. She's in my bed." Lily said. Sirius raised an eyebrow but left the living room. Harry and Emma were watching anxiously and Louise stayed quiet. Sirius went upstairs and tried to comfort Rhia the whole time. She was beginning to calm down and her crying had ceased to a sob. Sirius pushed the door open and April sat up in her bed. She looked as though she hadn't been very well at all.

"Sirius!" She said relieved. Sirius smiled.

"Guess who I've got." He said. He turned to reveal Rhia, though April couldn't see Rhia's face she knew who it was. She got out of the bed and ran to them.

"Rhia!" April said as she started crying. Rhia turned at the sound of her mum's voice. April took Rhia from Sirius and held her tightly.

"Mummy." Rhia cried silently, "They hurt me" Rhia muttered. "Aunty Lily say cruso" Rhia sobbed. April rocked Rhia and made soft hushing noises. She looked at Sirius with a serious but incredibly grateful look.

"Aunt Lily won't say that again." April said. "If she does I will hurt her" Rhia seemed content with that and made a grabbing motion for Sirius. Sirius took her and she soon fell asleep in Sirius' arms. April watched carefully, more tears forming in her eyes. Sirius lay Rhia gently down on Lily's bed and went to April.

"Are you ok?" Sirius asked, putting an arm on April's shoulder. "I'm sorry I left without saying anything." April let Sirius wipe away a tear. She threw her arms around Sirius and held him tightly. Sirius put his arms around her.

"Thank you." April muttered. "Thank you so much for finding her. I felt like killing myself." Sirius closed his eyes and held April tightly against him.

"We've found her. We just need to watch over her. She's been badly hurt but Lily healed her up. She's ok April." April pushed Sirius away.

"Don't ever go away without telling me again" she cried. "Or never go without one of us as well. You could have been killed and no one would have known." Sirius pulled April closer and kissed her gently.

"You would have known." Sirius said after the kiss. April kissed Sirius again, she wrapped her arms around his neck and Sirius deepened the kiss as much as he dared.

"Never go away again." April said.

"Does that mean you want me to stay at home?" Sirius asked.

"All the time. Don't work, don't go anywhere, just stay near me." April said, she put her head on Sirius' shoulder

"I think I can do that." Sirius said. He looked at Rhia, who slept on Lily's bed. What had she meant by Lily using Cruso? Was she referring to the Cruciatus curse? Lily hadn't been anywhere near Rhia over the past few days. Why did Rhia think it was Lily? What had the Death Eaters done to her? What had that curse done to her? Sirius decided he was going to take Rhia over to St. Mungos first thing the next morning to make sure there was nothing wrong with her. He kissed the top of April's head and watched his daughter.

"How is the other child?" Sirius whispered.

"Orion?" April asked.

"No, the one inside you?" Sirius asked. April kissed Sirius before giving him a forced smile.

"Alright, it's healthy still. Just annoyingly irritating." April said. Sirius brushed some of April's hair away from her face and kissed her again.

"Lets get Rhia home. I'll take her to St. Mungos tomorrow then make sure your pregnancy is nice and easy. I'm sorry I did this to you." Sirius said. April sighed and hugged Sirius. She didn't want to let go of him at all. If she did she was scared that he'd run off again like before, but he'd had a reason, she couldn't take her eyes off Rhia. It felt so good to have her back again. April let go of Sirius and went to the bed. She gently picked up Rhia and made sure she was comfortable in her arms and turned to Sirius.

"Lets go home." April said with a smile. Sirius smiled and called for Orion. They walked downstairs and Orion joined them quickly.

"Oh, wait I have to do something, you go ahead and I'll meet you at home." Sirius said. He gave April a quick kiss. April looked at him apprehensively.

"Bye Lily." April called. Lily appeared.

"Bye April. Um...make sure Rhia's ok." Lily said. She still looked vaguely confused. April gave her a weak smile and then left the house with Rhia and Orion. Rhia still fast asleep in her arms. Sirius turned to look at Lily.

"Um, is Louise still here?" He asked. Lily nodded.

"Where did you find her. She's a bit weird" Lily said.

"I found her on Dartmoor. I accidentally attacked her thinking she was a Death Eater. She's harmless really." Sirius said.

"Well I spoke to her and what she seems to want is quite reasonable really." Lily said. Sirius nodded and walked into the living room and gave Louise a slight smile.

"Hi," She said.

"Hey, so have you been speaking to Lily?" Sirius asked. Louise nodded.

"She said some arrangements could be made for protection. Of course, I don't think we'll need much protection but enough so that in case my brother's friends do decide to do something." Sirius nodded. He understood Louise's concerns.

"Um, where do you live?" Sirius asked.

"Near Ottery St. Catchpole" Louise said. Lily stood next to Sirius.

"The Weasleys live near there." Lily said gently.

"We know the Weasleys." Louise said with a slightly smile. "They've helped us out a few times with the Muggle authorities." Sirius nodded and turned to Lily.

"Do you think we should as Dumbledore if he should recruit them to the you know what?" Sirius asked. Lily shrugged.

"We could they seem like nice people." Lily said. Sirius nodded. "Do you mind if we get back to you before tonight." Lily asked. Louise nodded.

"That will be fine." She said. Lily smiled.

"Thanks. It was nice to meet you mrs. Lovegood."

"Please, just Louise." She said. "And make sure April isn't too hard on him" Louise said with s smirk. Lily nodded and Louise disapparated. Lily turned to Sirius.

"How did you get Rhia out?" Lily asked.

"Portkey." Sirius said. "I got in as Padfoot, I am Snuffles the Lovegood dog!" He said. Lily sighed and shook her head.

"I think you should go and help April with Rhia. I don't understand why she was scared of me." Lily said.

"Maybe they had a red haired woman put the spell on her?" Sirius suggested. Lily put a hand to her hair and looked at it slightly.

"Do you think that Rhia would be scared of me because of that?" Lily asked anxiously.

"I don't know Lily. I don't think we'll be able to find out for a while." Sirius said, "I mean, Rhia can barely talk very much and she's still young." Lily nodded then hugged Sirius. "Ok." Sirius said uncertainly.

"You're an idiot Sirius!" Lily said.

"I know." Sirius said. "Well, I'm going to get back to April and the kids. Talk to Dumbledore for me will you? See you." He said. Lily nodded and Sirius ran out of the house. He ran straight to his house and pushed the door open. He walked upstairs and glanced at Rhia's room. April was kneeling by Rhia's bed and Orion was bouncing on it.

"Rhia here, Rhia here!" He was shouting loudly. Sirius shook his head and walked over.

* * *

Lily looked up at the old castle. There was a small jerk in her heart as she looked at it. She missed this place. It had been her home for seven years, it was where she had been introduced to magic. Where she'd met Jenny and April, fallen in love with James. She looked at Remus, who stood next to her.

"It seems like only yesterday we were running around to stop you and James hexing each other." Remus said with a sigh.

"I know." Lily said. She looked back at the castle. She missed it so badly. "Come on, lets see if Dumbledore's there." Lily said. Remus and Lily started for the castle. Each step was all too familiar to Lily. She didn't know she would feel like this when she saw the castle again. Hogwarts school for Witchcraft and Wizardry. The castle just seemed to beckon to them. It wanted them to come to them. The school was a place of love and learning. Oh the library there, Lily missed it. They approached the main entrance when an old witch walked out. Her hair was tied back in a tight bun at the back of her head. She wore a large hat and looked at Lily and Remus then smiled.

"Mrs. Potter, Mr. Lupin." She said with a smile.

"Professor McGonagall." Remus said.

"May I ask what you are doing at the school?"

"Reminiscing." Lily sighed. Remus chuckled slightly. McGonagall shook her head in amusement.

"No, we're here to see Dumbledore. Lily's just missing her school days." Remus said.

"They were very good times." Lily said defensively.

"They were." Remus said.

"Ah, well the head master is busy but he'll be free in about half an hour. You're welcome to wait for a while. I will tell him you're here." McGonagall said.

"Thank you." Lily said. "We'll sit by the lake for a while." McGonagall nodded and went back into the school. Lily and Remus walked towards the lake. There was a large beech tree that was right next to the lake. Lily and her friends had sat under there a lot during their years at Hogwarts. If it wasn't Lily, Jenny and April, the Marauders sat there. Occasionally there had been a clash of who sat there but after Lily and James got together there was peace all round. Lily and Remus sat down and looked over the lake.

"God, I miss this place." Remus said. Lily looked at Remus slightly amused.

"You say god?" She asked, "That's my word."

"You aren't the only on with muggle parents remember" Remus chuckled. Lily smiled.

"Oh yeah." Lily said. Her smile faded slightly. "I miss my parents." She said. "You guys are all lucky you still have them." Lily said.

"Lily it was, what? Six years ago you lost them."

"Five." Lily corrected.

"They got the chance to see Harry, they died happily." Remus said

"But they never saw Emma" Lily said.

"Neither did James' family." Remus said.

"Oh god, he got the worst deal didn't he?" Lily asked. Remus nodded. "How's Bo? He seemed a bit too hyper when I saw him."

"Oh yeah, he's still hyper. There's a full moon in a week and he's still refusing to take the Wolfsbane potion." Remus said. "He's too stubborn."

"You know who he gets it from?" Lily said with a smile.

"Jenny." Remus said. "The most I gave him was a curse on his life." Remus said.

"No, you didn't." Lily said. "Bo is happy and that's the most important thing. He doesn't care about being a werewolf, you can tell." Lily said. Remus looked at her sceptically. "Fine don't believe me." Lily said. "It's just what April told me."

"And how would April know?" Remus asked.

"She's a Legilimen!" Lily said. "Remember?" Lily said pretending to knock on Remus' head. Remus laughed.

"Oh yeah. I can't believe you girls made us try and figure it out." Remus said.

"I can't believe you guys only figured it out last year!" Lily said, "You're all so slow!" Remus and Lily laughed.

* * *

**A/N:-Well, I've finished writing this storyline, haven't finished posting it though. The next chapter will kinda be the end of this storyline, i became a bit lazy, as I am generally, and now I'm working on next storyline. There's a little bit between Lily and James in the next chapter that i kinda like. BUT we're not there yet. I hope you liked this chapter, i'm kinda not completely happy with it but hey, what can i do?**

**There's a common theme in my reviews, Sirius and April....let me just tell you, things will get worse before they get better...it's just how i see their relationship! but it will get better for a while before it does get worse. They have a really really wierd love/hate relationship. As I said, it's how i see their relationship....also, just want to know for a possible future thing...What dop people think about April and Jenny ganging up against the perfect family in this story? well sorta...it'll make more sense when i start to write it. hm....is there anything else? erm...i don't think so. Will post the next chapter soon, maybe**


	11. Recruiting the Weasleys

**

* * *

Recruiting the Weasleys**

They sat in silence for a while as they watched a large tentacle sticking out of the water. The giant squid that inhabited the waters of the lake at Hogwarts. Remus looked at his watch after what seemed like ten minutes.

"I think Dumbledore should have finished by now." Remus said. Lily looked at his watch as well.

"Yeah, come on, lets go." Lily said as she got up reluctantly. They walked up to the castle, it was so strange seeing it as empty as it was. As it was the summer holidays only the teachers, at most, would be in the castle, that wasn't including the various ghosts and creatures that lived there. They walked into the grand entrance hall and up the main staircase. They walked the once familiar path to Dumbledore's office. Remus had been in his office because of the various things Sirius and James got up to, where as Lily went because of her head girl duties. As they approached the gargoyle that protected the headmaster's office it moved out of sight and Dumbledore appeared where the Gargoyle had been.

"Lily, Remus." He said with a smile. He had light blue eyes that seemed to have a constant knowing but cheeky spark in it. He had long silver hair and an equally long silver beard. He looked at them over his half moon glasses and smiled. Lily grinned and Remus smiled.

"Dumbledore." Lily said politely.

"It is so nice to see you. May I enquire as to the reason for your visit?" Dumbledore asked.

"We have an idea of some new people to recruit to the you know what." Remus said. Dumbledore looked at them and led them to his office. Lily and Remus sat down in two rather comfortable chairs, Lily didn't remember the chairs being this comfortable. Dumbledore sat behind his desk and stroked a large red and gold phoenix that stood on a perch. The phoenix looked at them curiously before tucking his head under his wing.

"You do know that the Order has broken up for the time being." Dumbledore said.

"Yes we know but we think that these two would make valuable additions to the order. And do you think that maybe we should gather a few people together, surely you've heard about Harry and Rhia going missing recently?" Lily asked. Dumbledore nodded gravely.

"Yes, I have heard. Has Rhia been recovered? Last I heard Sirius was planning something rather daring." Dumbledore said.

"She's alive and healthy, Lily just managed to heal her." Remus said. Dumbledore looked at them curiously.

"Just managed?" He asked.

"She wouldn't let me near her. Apparently I performed the Cruciatus curse on or near her." Lily said, "So she's too scared to be near me." Lily said despairingly.

"Ah. Is she healthy mentally. If the Cruciatus curse was performed on her then her mind may not be as it once was" Dumbledore said.

"Well, Rhia wouldn't let me near her but Sirius is taking her to St. Mungos tomorrow." Lily said. Dumbledore nodded.

"But we were wondering if we should recruit the Weasleys to the Order. They've helped to find Harry, they're nice people and they hate the dark side. I haven't met them personally-" Remus was saying but Dumbledore cut him off.

"I remember Authur Weasley and Molly Prewitt." He said nodding his head "Both were very respectable Gryffindors. Very nice people. Very well. The order has disbanded but if you must use members of the order, I will call on a few members for help to protect your children and to do what you say though I would expect individuals of your skills and talents to protect your children." Dumbledore said slightly disappointed.

"Oh, we're not really asking for protection for ourselves." Lily said, "But for a woman called Louise Lovegood. She helped to save Rhia and her brother is a Death Eater. If we can gain her trust then I believe that we may be able to get rid of some of the last Death Eaters. She and Sirius know where their lair is on Dartmoor." Dumbledore looked at her curiously.

"Dartmoor?" Dumbledore asked. "I have heard rumours but never solid proof. Well, I suggest you tell James and get him to take his Aurors over and sort this out. As for the Lovegoods, I will find them someone to watch over them for the meantime. But it cannot go on for long." Lily and Remus smiled.

"Thank you. So can we recruit the Weasleys?" Lily asked. Dumbledore nodded.

"But be careful how you explain it." Dumbledore said.

"Thank you" Remus said. Dumbledore gave them both a smile and got up with them.

"You are all doing very well for what you have been through." Dumbledore said putting a hand on Remus' shoulder. "Take care and say hello to your children from me, I have not seen Young Harry and Bo for a very long time."

"And you haven't even seen Emma, Rhia or Orion." Lily said.

"That is very true." Dumbledore said. "That will settle it then, you must come and have dinner with me one time during one of the holidays." Dumbledore said with a smile.

"I think it would be better if it were after Sirius and April's pregnancy." Remus said with a smirk. Dumbledore chuckled.

"Ah yes, Sirius's pregnancy, I had a letter from him asking how to get rid of it. A trick worthy of a Marauder I believe" he said with a wink to the two. "Now, I am afraid that is where I must leave you to find your own way out. I have a meeting with our new Minister of Magic, it seems wants to figure out the best way of keeping control of St. Mungos." Lily raised an eyebrow and looked at Dumbledore questioningly.

"Do not worry Lily. It will be partly of benefit to you. It seems that an auror has complained about the...um...forwardness of some healers to their colleagues." Dumbledore said to Lily. Lily shook her head.

"James?" She asked. Dumbledore nodded with a smile.

"Ok, well, we'll be off now and go and talk to the Weasleys." Remus said. Dumbledore bid them goodbye again and the two left the castle a little reluctantly.

"I don't want to leave." Lily said, looking back at the castle longingly.

"Neither do I but we're not students any more." Remus said with a sigh. Lily nodded and looked towards the Forbidden forest. She saw the ground keeper's hut. The ground keeper, Hagrid, was outside and appeared to be digging up his pumpkin patch. Lily sighed and once out of the grounds with Remus they went to have something to eat at the three broomsticks.

* * *

"Oh, Emma is here." Said one of the red haired twin as Molly Weasley let Lily, Emma and Harry in.

"Have you got your cat?" The other one asked

"No." Emma said stiffly. "Go way."

"Come Fred, it appears the young lady does not want our affections." George said. Him and Fred turned around and stalked off.

"Lily, it's so nice to see you." Molly said, "I was just saying to Arthur how nice it was having your children round." She said with a smile.

"So is your husband here?" Lily asked. Molly smiled again and led Lily to the kitchen.

"Lily, this is Arthur, Arthur, this is Lily Potter." Arthur Weasley stood up and shook Lily's hand.

"I've had the pleasure of meeting James Potter, after he accidentally lost your son." Arthur said. Lily smiled.

"Yes, well, James does that sometimes." Lily said. "Um, do either of you have to be anywhere any time soon?"

"No, I have the day off." Arthur said. Lily smiled slightly.

"Good, um..." Lily twisted her hands slightly. "I'm a member of the Order of the Phoenix. The order is an organisation that was started by Dumbledore to fight the Dark Lord Voldemort." Molly and Arthur flinched at his name, "Of course he is gone but we don't believe he's gone permanently, just gathering his strength. We fight for the cause of good and try and hamper the plans of Death Eaters or Voldemort. But basically, what I'm trying to say is, would you like to join us? But if you do join I'm afraid you'll be in it forever." Lily said. Molly and Arthur looked at Lily with mixed expressions on their face.

"You say you're a member of this organisation?" Arthur asked.

"I joined just after I turned eighteen." Lily said. Arthur nodded.

"Isn't that a bit young?" Molly asked. Lily shrugged. "Well, will we be in any danger?"

"Um, not unless you're the family of the boy-who-lived." Lily said. "But no, not at the moment. When Voldemort returns you might be in danger but as far as we are aware, he does know we exist but he isn't aware of who are members."

"How does he know?" Arthur asked. Lily took a sharp breath in and sat down at the table.

"A man called Peter Pettigrew." Lily said darkly.

"I've heard of him. He was imprisoned for being an animagus." Arthur said, "The Aurors talk about him quite a lot."

"That's because he's a traitor." Lily said, "We considered him one of our best friends. James and I trusted him with our lives and the lives of our children. We made him a secret keeper and then he-" Lily's voice shook with anger as she spoke. She had to stop and close her eyes. She felt a hand on hers and looked down. Molly held her hand.

"If it's to stop people like him then we'll join." She said. "I'll join, I'm not sure about Arthur. And if you say we won't be in danger for a while then I trust you. Though I'm not sure how I could help. I don't work for the ministry, I'm not a Healer, I'm just a house witch." Lily smiled.

"Well, it doesn't matter, we have a werewolf and a rich Chinese woman who help us as well as various other families who don't have very high ranking jobs." Lily said. Arthur smiled.

"We'll join your organisation." He said. "Just don't let my children get wind of it or they'll want to join." Lily smiled.

"Same with my children, but they're not as old as yours yet." Lily said.

"You're lucky." Arthur said. Molly nudged him and Arthur looked at her innocently.

* * *

James sat at his desk in his office and looked across it to Sirius. Sirius had told him the precise location of where the Death Eater hide out had been. James sat with his hands together on his desk.

"How is Rhia?" He asked Sirius.

"She's better" Sirius told James. "Lily tried to see her again but Rhia just screamed and held on to me as tightly as she could. I don't understand it."

"Red haired Death Eater obviously. And Rhia's associating red haired adults with whatever pain that she received. Have you taken her to St. Mungos?" Sirius nodded.

"The healers there said she's healthy, there aren't really any signs of any curses being used on her, though there were some, what was it? Um, Tissue swelling from where they've used the engorgement charm on her then stopped it. All the Healer said was that Rhia may have trust issues when she's older. And that she may get a few muscle pains." Sirius said. "I can't believe I let them do that to her." Sirius said with a sigh. James scowled and looked at the desk.

"Well if it's any consolation, they'll all go to Azkaban." James said.

"Yeah, I suppose but I want to know who took Rhia so I can get revenge-"

"Leave that to us Sirius. You're not authorised to do stuff like that and if you did you yourself would be sent to azkaban. I don't think April will be at all happy about that." James said.

"I suppose." Sirius muttered.

"Thanks for telling us though. I can get you a temporary auror permit thing but those are really difficult to get." James said.

"Oh, it's fine. I'll trust you with it." Sirius said. "I'm tired, feel incredibly sick and I just want to get home and stay with my family for a bit." James smirked. "It's not funny. Pregnancy is no joke." Sirius said.

"Not laughing" James said innocently. Sirius muttered something that James didn't quite catch and then disapparated. James sat in silence for a few minutes before getting a piece of parchment. He folded it up and put it in his pocket. He got up and pulled on his robes before leaving the office. He needed to get this mission authorised. He should get it straight away but he had to make sure anyway. He went to an office with MOODY written on it in slanted letters. There were a few other surnames on it but James wanted to see Moody. James knocked on the door and waited for a moment.

"Come in." Moody grumbled. James pushed the door open and narrowly missed a curse that hit the wall an inch away from his head. James looked at the wall wide eyed.

"Merlin's Beard Moody, are you trying to kill me?" James asked as he turned to see Moody with his wand pointing at him. Moody's magical eye was whirling around and his normal eye focused on James.

"What you want Potter?" Moody asked as he lowered his wand.

"I would like to request permission to perform and Death Eater Clean Out." James said, straightening his posture. Both of James' eyes focused on James.

"A DECO." Moody said. It sounded like a question but it wasn't. "You know where their hide out?" James nodded.

"I have just been given their whereabouts and the password to their hide out." James said. Moody nodded as he took it in.

"Close the door Potter." Moody said. James looked at Moody with curiosity but turned and closed the door. Moody stood up and walked to the front of the desk. There was a thunk every time his wooden leg hit the floor. Moody stood in front of James with his hands crossed in front of him. He wore his Rank II Auror robes. Moody was a very highly ranked Auror. James stiffened and looked at Moody with slight and mild surprise.

"Sir." James said uncertainly.

"Potter. How old are you?" Moody asked.

"Twenty five sir." He answered. Moody nodded and returned to his desk, so his back was to James. James stayed where he stood. His hand itching to get his wand in case this was another trap.

"Potter, your parents were amazing Aurors, your sister was highly respected and was well on her way to becoming a high ranking auror. You and Marsd-Black are the most talented aurors we've taken on since your sister. The two of you have a combined Death Eater capture count of nearly three hundred, you have led nearly a hundred successful raids and you both have a family. You are both rank eight Aurors, am I right?"

"Yes sir." James said. Moody nodded and turned slightly. James could swear he saw a slight smile on his face.

"April will be getting her letter of congratulations tomorrow." Moody said. "I would like to present you with these." Moody said holding a box in his arms. James looked at Moody rather surprised. "Take them Potter or you won't get permission for this DECO" He said. James rushed forwards and took the box. He opened them to find some robes he wasn't expecting for another few years.

"Rank seven?" James asked, looking at Moody very surprised. Moody clapped him on the shoulder.

"Congratulations Potter. You have an increased wage and you no longer have to get full clearance from your old Mentor for operations such as DECOs. In fact, you no longer need me." Moody said, "As long as you write up a report for each of your operations, and inform a rank two Auror of your operation." James looked at Moody surprised.

"But I'm not that good am I?" James asked Moody. Moody sighed a slightly hoarse sounding sigh.

"Potter. We still have Aurors twice your age who are still at rank eight. Now you and Black, you are the most talented Aurors we have. I wouldn't be surprised if one of you make it to head auror before you're thirty. Now, I believe we have Death Eaters who need taking care of." Moody said gruffly as he took a swig of drink from his hipflask.

"Yeah, I'll go and get a team ready." James said.

"Leave it to me boy, you put on your new robes and then meet us in this office in ten minutes." Moody said. He went past James and opened the door. He left the room and closed the door behind him.

"Yes sir." James said to himself, a smile plastered over his face. He left the office and ran straight to his. He pulled out a piece of parchment and dipped his quill into some ink.

Lily

I have some good news to tell you when I get home. Are you still at home or have you gone to work? I'll see you tonight.

I love you so much

James

James folded it up and looked at his owl, who sat perched in his cage. James gave a whistle and the owl flew over to James.

"Take this to Lily." He said. This was actually April's owl but April and Sirius had leant him to James for a while. The owl hooted and launched himself into the air. James pulled off his robes and got out his new robes. He admired them for a moment before putting on his new robes. There wasn't much difference apart from the fact that the rank VIII robes had a small 8 sewn into the chest of the robes in dark red. It also had a dark red lining. Both of which turned black when out on raids. The rank VII robes had a Purple lining. James couldn't help grinning.

* * *

Lily apparated back home and let out a long sigh. She wasn't supposed to go into work but she'd been called back for an emergency operation on a patient. She pulled her hair tie out of her hair and let her long auburn hair fall down her back.

"Harry, Emma." Lily called. They should be asleep, the lack of an answer proved her theory correct. She smiled and went up the stairs and to Harry's room. He was fast asleep on his back with his mouth open slightly. Lily smiled and closed the door then head over to Emma's room. Emma was curled up in her bed cuddling a fairly large soft toy in the shape of a stag. Her window was open and a slight warm summer's breeze blew her curtains slightly. Lily went into the room and closed the window and then put away a muggle toy called a Barbie away. Lily had always hated Barbie but Emma loved it. She bent over and gave Emma a kiss before leaving the room and closing the door behind her. She went into her room and found a note on her bed.

Lily or James

Kids put safely to sleep. Hope you have a fairly peaceful night. I'll talk to you soon.

Molly

Lily looked at the note slightly surprised. Molly had been here? Lily and James normally left the children on their own, they were perfectly fine on their own and they loved it. Unlike Orion and Rhia, who were younger then them, Emma and Harry didn't seem to cause much trouble. Usually they were at their friends houses but today had been one of those occasions where Lily hadn't been able to help it. Everyone had been rather busy and Lily had no other choice. Lily put the note on the dressing table then started to take off her uniform.

"You carry on like that and I'm afraid I can't tell you my good news." Came James' voice from the door. Lily broke into a wide grin and turned around. He was standing in the doorway. Lily was about to go and kiss him when she noticed something different about his robes. James grinned as he saw Lily hesitate.

"Like it?" He asked. Lily raised an eyebrow.

"Your robes are different." She said. James went to Lily and caught her lips in a soft kiss. James kissed the side of Lily's face and then kissed her ear lobe.

"I got promoted." James whispered into her ear. Lily's face broke into a grin and she hugged James.

"Oh my god, that's brilliant. When?" Lily asked.

"Earlier today." James said. "And I've led a successful clean out." He gave Lily a kiss. She pulled away slightly. James' arms stopped her from getting too far away so she leant in them and put her hands on James' chest.

"I like them." She said. James laughed.

"They're not much different to my last robes." James said.

"But they're a nicer colour, look at it!" She said as she looked at the robes. James laughed. Lily smoothed out a few creases and looked like she was getting an idea. "You know what you're going to have to do for me?" Lily asked James. She looked into his eyes. James smiled and looked back.

"What?" He asked, there was some laughter in his voice. Lily slipped free of his arms and went to a radio that was on the dressing table. She tuned it to a radio station playing some songs that she really liked. She turned to James with a mischievous look.

"Strip." She said with a laugh.

"No." James said bluntly. Lily pouted and began to undo her healer's uniform as she walked back to James. He was staring at her with a slight smile.

"Do it or..." Lily tried to think of something to do to James. She took her uniform off so she was literally in her underwear. This caused James to step closer to the bed. She put her arms around James' neck.

"I'll have to compare you to a few other people out there." She said. James bit his lip nervously. He didn't want Lily to go and sleep with other men, he knew she could carry that threat through, there wasn't a lack of men wanting to sleep with her but then, if James did give Lily the pleasure of a striptease he knew that it'd get back to Lily's friends. They all knew about each other's sex lives, it bugged the crap out of Sirius, Remus and James but they couldn't stop the girls at all. Lily removed a few other pieces of clothing so she was ONLY in her underwear. James ran his hands down her back and then nodded.

"But you owe me." James said. Lily clapped her hands and jumped on the bed.

"Yay, I win." She said like a child.

"I can't believe I'm doing this." James muttered with his eyes closed.

"Don't worry, I'll reward you very generously." Lily said with a grin.

"You better." James said as he put the volume of the radio up just a little bit more. Lily stuck her tongue out cheekily and hugged a pillow as James started his striptease.

* * *

**FINAL DEATH EATERS ROUNDED UP**

**In a large scale operation last night, the top aurors of the Ministry rounded up the final Death Eaters that have not been caught or convicted for allegiance to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. The leader of the operation was James Potter, recently promoted from Rank VIII to Rank VII. The Death Eaters were found in an underground hide out near Cadover Bridge in Devon. The operation was of small scale but highly successful with only one entrance and therefore one exit. Intelligence was received by the Auror headquarters of this hide out when a young child was allegedly kidnapped and held hostage. The child, who will remain anonymous, is currently back home and recovering from her ordeal with her parents. When we asked James Potter what this operation meant for the wizarding community he told the Prophet this:**

**"The wizarding community can now heave a sigh of relief. We have interrogated those we have captured and we can safely say that there are no more lairs of Death Eaters. Though there may still be some rogue Death Eaters out there and still several supporters of you know who they will be dealt with appropriately." He announced. It is now safe to say that the wizarding world is now finally at rest and there is peace once again.**

* * *

**A/N:-Ok, I think i'll clear this up, I said i was sick of the story line....not the story. I love writing this story but i really want to get to a few years time where all the kids are a bit more grown up and bit more quirky. Anyway, thts it for this storyline...thank god! I rather liked the thing between JAmes and Lily..the striptease..I'm afraid only Lily will know how James did it and how good a stripper he is...hehe. Next bit of hte story will be like 7-8 months later...I'll put it at the top of the next chappie so don't worry. Hope you liked this chapter...WEASLEYS ROCK!!**


	12. Bo's Escape

**Seven months later**

**Bo's Escape**

Jenny sat on the bed staring at Remus. Remus stared back at her curiously with an eyebrow slightly raised.

"What is it?" Remus asked. Jenny frowned and knelt up. She put her hands to Remus' hair and ran them through it. She seemed to sort through Remus' hair until she picked out a single hair.

"You're greying already!" Jenny said slightly alarmed.

"What?" Remus asked, putting his hands to his hair.

"You have a grey hair!" Jenny said. Remus smirked slightly and lowered his hands and put them around Jenny's waist. He pulled her off her knees and pulled her over his legs. She laughed as he did. She playfully hit Remus' chest.

"Remus! I'm serious, you're greying. You're not even thirty!" She said.

"I'm half way there though."

"But you shouldn't be greying!" Jenny said. She went back to his hair again with her legs either side of Remus' body. Remus rolled his eyes. He felt too weak to stop her. The full moon was tonight and he just didn't have the strength or energy. Remus just put his hands on Jenny's legs and let her rifle through his hair, hunting down every grey hair he had. Remus had noticed the grey hairs a few weeks ago and hadn't told Jenny because he knew she loved his hair. She looked ready to scream as she found a few more.

"Are you ok?" Remus asked, looking at Jenny.

"Um, yeah." She said quietly. "You're greying!" She said desperately. Remus sat up properly, causing Jenny to slide off his body and onto his legs. She looked at him rather lost.

"I don't mind." He said pressing a kiss on Jenny's lips. She closed her eyes and let Remus kiss her.

"Are you sure?" She asked. "I mean, your hair is like-" Remus kissed her again and she smiled.

"I don't want to bring this up now but has Bo taken his Wolfsbane potion?" Remus asked. Jenny sighed and shook her head.

"He still won't drink it. He gets scared by the smoke on the surface." Jenny said. Remus gave her a curious look and hugged Jenny close to him.

"I won't take it tonight, make sure he's ok. Try and give it to him tonight." Remus said.

"That's what I was going to do." Jenny said with a slightly annoyed look. "Merlin, he's just so stubborn" Jenny said. She got off Remus and swung her legs over the end of the bed. Remus chuckled slightly. Jenny turned and looked at him. "What's so funny?" She asked, a smirk playing on her face.

"You are." Remus said. He moved over and put his arms around Jenny and put his head on her shoulder. "He gets it from you." Remus said gently.

"Hmm..." Jenny said, obviously not agreeing.

"Come on, I'll cook breakfast." Remus said getting out of the bed and pulling Jenny after him.

"I thought you were too tired?" Jenny asked. Remus shrugged.

"I'll just cook, nothing more." Remus said, Jenny opened her mouth to say something when Remus carried on, "Well, maybe I'll eat it." He said. Jenny smiled and followed Remus to the kitchen. Jenny sat down at the breakfast table and rested her head gently on the table as Remus went to the muggle fridge they had. Soon though, the kitchen was filled with the sounds and smells of what Remus was cooking. Jenny had actually fallen asleep. Remus smiled as he put the food on the table and put a hand on Jenny's back.

"Jenny." Remus said gently. Jenny woke up as Bo came running into the kitchen.

"Food! Food! Food!" Bo said. He climbed onto a chair and sat down.

"You have too much energy for a full moon." Remus said ruffling Bo's hair.

"Food! Food! Food!" Bo said.

"His priorities are the same as yours." Jenny said. "Food....food...family...food" Remus laughed.

"Yeah, that sounds about right." Remus said. Jenny hit him gently. "I'm just joking." He said.

"Bo, have you had your potion?" Jenny asked him.

"Yes" Bo lied. Jenny looked at him sceptically. Bo gave her an innocent smile before reaching for the plate of bacon. Remus moved it out of the way and Bo frowned.

"Bo." Remus said.

"Yes daddy." Bo answered.

"Have you had your potion?" Remus asked. Bo looked at Remus then at the food then back to his dad again.

"No." Bo said. Jenny threw her hands in the air.

"Why does he answer to you and not to me?" Jenny said. Remus gave her a grin then turned back to Bo.

"Bo, if you drink your potion, we'll give you breakfast." Remus said. Bo gave Remus a look that told Remus that Bo didn't believe him. His dad would never withhold food. Remus sighed and put the plate of bacon in front of Bo. Bo picked up a few pieces and put them on his plate.

"I've tried, I failed." Remus said sitting in his seat. Jenny smiled and held Remus' hand.

"Next try, don't withhold food. Bo is cleverer then that." Jenny said comfortingly.

"It just means I'm going to have to go through the whole transformation." Remus sighed again. He didn't like the transformations at all.

"Do you want me to come out with you?" Jenny asked. Remus shook his head.

"To dangerous, you can't get near Bo without him attacking you." Remus said. Jenny scowled.

"Oh yeah." She said. "I'll ask Lily if there's a way we can disguise the potion so that Bo will drink it."

"Yeah, that'll be a good idea." Remus said. He leant over and kissed Jenny on the cheek.

"Daddy, mummy. I am eating." Bo said in a matter-of-factly tone. He looked so cute as he held his fork out and chewed on his food. Jenny and Remus laughed slightly and ate their own breakfasts.

* * *

"My back hurts!" Sirius complained as Jenny walked into his house. Lily hadn't been at her own house and Jenny knew it was her day off work. Remus shook his head as he heard Sirius.

"Oh, shut up Sirius! April and I are trying to sort out Orion!" Lily snapped. Bo ran past Jenny and Remus into the living room. Jenny and Remus followed.

"Hi guys." April said brightly. She was sitting in one of her large comfy chairs. Her belly was now rather huge. She was about eight months pregnant and Jenny was pretty sure her stomach wasn't supposed to be THAT big, if she remembered anything from her healer training, before she dropped out. Sirius was lying on the sofa with Rhia sitting on his chest. She was watching the fire place curiously. Sirius' belly was just as big as April's belly. Remus tried not to laugh as he walked into the living room. Emma Potter was lying on her front on the floor and was doodling on a piece of paper with a crayon. Her cat, Baloo, sat in front of Emma mewing quietly as he watched Emma draw him.

"Um, how's the baby doing?" Remus asked. April laughed slightly while Sirius grumbled away to himself.

"I hate it! Pregnancy is a bitch!" Sirius said.

"Language!" April snapped, "Rhia, hit him for me." Rhia turned to Sirius and hit him gently.

"Good daughter." Sirius said, he had been expecting a hard slap. Rhia grinned. She seemed to be doing ok. Jenny remembered straight after her kidnap Rhia would scream every time some who wasn't April, Sirius or Orion went near her. Emma had been the next person to be accepted by Rhia then Harry and Bo. She was still reluctant to trust any of the other adults.

"Where's Lily?" Jenny asked. Sirius and April both looked at the fireplace as a short scream came from it.

"Lily?" Remus asked approaching the fireplace hesitantly. A cloud of soot fell down the fireplace followed by Lily, who landed roughly on the stone hearth. Emma, Rhia and Bo all started laughing loudly.

"Ow." She said uncomfortably. She winced and stood up carefully. She put a hand to her bum.

"Um, what are you doing?" Jenny asked. She was torn between amusement and concern.

"Someone got Orion stuck up the chimney." Lily said, "And those two are too fat to get to him and James is at work." Lily said as she looked up the chimney. "Orion!"

"Mummy?" came Orion's reply.

"Not my fault." Emma said. "Rhia chase Rion and Rion go poof and go up chimy"

"You two shouldn't have been chasing Orion!" Lily snapped at her daughter, "You know he broke his leg!" Emma shrugged and carried on drawing.

"AH!! PIDER!!" Orion screamed. April rolled her eyes and started to get up.

"No, April, I'll help Lily." Jenny said, "Remus, you go run a bath for when we get Orion out."

"If you get Orion out." Sirius said. Jenny and Lily both turned to look at Sirius. Sirius shrank slightly. "I'm sorry." He said. Rhia laughed and lay down next to Sirius and hugged him tightly. It was becoming increasingly obvious that Rhia was going to become a daddy's girl. Something that annoyed April slightly but good for Sirius because it forced April to let Sirius look after Rhia. April was beginning to trust Sirius again with the children. Jenny went to the fireplace and looked up the chimney.

"Can you see him?" Lily asked. Jenny squinted slightly, she could just make out the white of Orion's plaster cast.

"Yeah, just about. How tall is this chimney?" Jenny asked.

"Too tall." Lily said "Ok, if we can somehow catch hold of one of his legs, it doesn't matter which one." Lily said.

"But hasn't he got a cast on?" Jenny asked.

"Oh, he only wanted that because he saw a muggle boy with one." April said. Jenny nodded and got out her wand.

"Ok, let me try." She put her wand up the chimney and watched as a length of silver cord shot up into the chimney. It caught Orion's leg and she pulled it. She felt something give. She and Lily had to look down as a cloud of soot came tumbling down on them. The soot began to clear when something hard hit Lily on the head.

"Ow!" Lily said. Jenny and Lily looked at the floor. Orion's cast was lying on the fireplace.

"Oh for crying out loud." Lily muttered. "This is when we wish that one of the boys was a bird or something." Jenny smirked.

"Try again, you get one leg, I'll get the other." Jenny said. Lily nodded and they both shot the silver cords out of their wands. The cords wrapped around Orion's legs and they pulled as hard as they could. They heard something sliding then soon they saw Orion falling down the chimney. Lily caught him and coughed as more soot fell down. Jenny got out from the fireplace and let Lily come out with Orion, who had a wide grin on his black face.

"Got him." Lily said.

"Again!" Orion said.

"Yeah!" Emma said, "Was funny." Lily gave Emma a sharp look and Emma went quiet.

"Ok, Orion, time for a bath." April said. Lily put Orion down and Orion bolted up the stairs to the bathroom.

"I swear boys don't normally love baths as much as he does." Jenny said.

"Orion is a weird boy." Sirius said with a yawn. "Anyway, I'm going to sleep."

"Again!" April and Lily said at the same time. Jenny laughed at their reaction.

"Yeah, there isn't like there's much to do. I can barely move. I haven't been able to see anything below my belly for a few weeks now, which begs the question, can I still function properly-"

"Oh, Sirius, that was just too much." Lily said.

"Well it's true!" Sirius said.

"Sirius, many men have worn the pregnancy bump before you and they've all...functioned well afterwards." Jenny said. Sirius gave her a sceptical look. "Anyway, I'm here to talk to Lily." Jenny said turning to Lily. Lily looked at her curiously.

"About what?" Lily asked.

"It concerns the Wolfbane potion. Bo won't drink it." Jenny said. Lily scowled.

"How long has it been going on for?"

"I don't know, nearly a year now." Jenny said. Lily nodded and took a deep breath.

"Hm, I don't know. I suppose you could disguise the potion. I'll talk to the potions department at work tomorrow for you." Lily said. "Potions isn't my speciality."

"Thanks." Jenny said. Lily gave her a smile.

"Lily!" Sirius called.

"Yes Darling." Lily said, turning to look at Sirius.

"My back hurts." Sirius said. Lily raised an eyebrow.

"Because that doesn't happen when you're pregnant." Lily said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Sirius groaned while April smirked slightly and Jenny laughed slightly.

"It's actually quite a cool idea getting him pregnant too." Jenny said.

"It's not cool." Sirius said. He tried to get up but failed. Rhia sat up and watched him. Sirius tried to get up again but flopped back. Rhia giggled and took Sirius' hand. She pulled Sirius as hard as she could.

"Bo help." Rhia said. Bo looked at her curiously then shrugged. He grabbed Sirius' other hand and the two children pulled as hard as they could.

"Aw, that's cute." Jenny said.

"That, Sirius, is why I don't lie down on the sofa." April said as Sirius managed to sit up properly. Sirius gave April a slight sneer as April jumped slightly.

"What is it?" Sirius asked, suddenly rather concerned.

"Baby just kicked." April said putting a hand on her belly.

"Oh, let me feel." Bo said. He ran over to April and put his head on her belly. April laughed slightly as Bo's head seemed to bounce slightly on her belly.

"Merlin, it feels like there's more then one baby in there." April said uncomfortably. She pushed Bo away slightly so she could get more comfortable.

"That was fun." Bo said with a smile. April smiled.

"Are you sure there's only one baby in there Lily?" April asked. Lily gave her a nervous smile.

"Positive." She said weakly, "Why would I lie to you?" She said. "Well, we have to go, Emma." Lily said a bit quickly. April narrowed her eyes slightly but shrugged it off.

"Oh." Emma muttered as she got up. She picked up her drawings of Baloo and then picked up Baloo. She cradled the cat in her arms. Jenny watched April try and see into Lily's eyes but at this stage of pregnancy April's legilimency sometimes got a bit messed up so she couldn't read people as easily as usual.

"Ok, bye." April said. Lily smiled and gave April a quick kiss on her cheek.

"I'll come by with more of that potion later on the way to Harry's school." April nodded and Lily looked at Emma. Emma waved bye to Bo and Rhia. Rhia waved bye while Bo gave her a smile and waved. Emma laughed and left the room. Lily hugged Jenny.

"Make sure that they don't argue." Lily whispered.

"Ok, um Lily can I talk to you really quickly outside." Jenny asked. Lily nodded.

"Bye darling." Lily said to Sirius.

"Urgh." Was his reply. Lily rolled her eyes and went into the hallway with Lily.

"April's got more then one child hasn't she?" Jenny asked quietly and Lily pulled on a fairly long beige coloured coat. Lily frowned as she did it up.

"Yeah, but don't tell her." Lily said, "Remember how she blew her top when she found out she was pregnant?" Jenny nodded, "Imagine that again but at this stage of her pregnancy. It'll be bad for the babies." Jenny nodded and smiled.

"Lucky April." She said. Lily laughed.

"It's not funny." Lily said.

"Really then why are you laughing?" Jenny asked. Lily shook her head and waved a hand.

"I'll see you tomorrow hopefully." Lily said.

"Aright. Have fun." Jenny said. Lily gave her a smile and made sure Emma had her coat on before leaving the house.

* * *

Moony lay on the floor watching Bo chasing his tail around trees. Usually Moony would be quite restless but today he was just too tired to do much. It had taken a lot of effort on Moony's human part to give Orion a bath and that had exhausted all his energy. Bo ran over to Moony and gave a small wolfy bark. Moony let out a soft growl and Bo ran around Moony. Moony closed his eyes slightly when something jumped onto his back. Moony craned his neck back to see Bo walking over him. Moony stood up and Bo tumbled off his back. Bo gave a playful bark and ran under Moony. Moony chased Bo playfully. Bo slid to a stop and began growling at Moony. Moony growled back before Bo ran at Moony and jumped on Moony's head. He playfully bit Moony's ear. Moony shook his head slightly and Bo shifted from one side of his head to hanging off Moony's ear. It wasn't painful, just annoying.

Suddenly, from the other side of the forest came a gunshot. Bo let go of Moony's ear in shock as Moony raised his head and sniffed the air. Bo ran under Moony and stayed there. There was another gunshot and Bo ran into the forest. Moony looked into the forest and was about to follow but then looked in the direction of the gunshot. Eventually he ran into the forest to look for Bo. He sniffed the ground but the scents were all mixed together, Bo usually played around here as a werewolf. Moony looked around frustrated before sitting down and letting out a long and loud howl. There was another gunshot and Moony stood up quickly. He turned and ran to where the house should be. Where Jenny would be. He dodged through the trees and burst out of them and into the back garden of the house. He ran to the door and went head first into it. The door shattered and slid to a stop in the kitchen. The lights came on and Jenny stood in the doorway with her wand out.

"Moony?" She asked. She rubbed her eyes slightly and knelt on the floor as Moony went to her and nudged his head against her body. "What is it?" She asked. Moony never broke into the house. Moony pointed his head in the direction of a photo on the wall. It was a picture of Bo and Jenny. Jenny looked at it then her eyes widened.

"What's happened to Bo?" Jenny asked. Moony bit a piece of material and started pulling Jenny out of the house into the cold winter air. Jenny shivered slightly and looked around. "Has he escaped?" She asked moony. Moony nodded his head quickly. Jenny rubbed her arms. "You go look for him, I'll be out in a minute." Moony ran into the forest at the end of the garden. Jenny went back into the house and pointed her wand at the door.

"Reparo." She said. The door fixed itself and Jenny ran to her room. She changed quickly into some Jeans and a turtleneck jumper and went to her wardrobe. She got out her broom from inside and went outside. She hadn't ridden her broom for literally years. It was too dangerous for her to walk through the forest

Jenny stood in the garden. It was quite windy tonight and the air seemed to bite at her cheeks. Jenny mounted her broom and flew in amongst the trees.

"Lumos!" She said. Her wand lit up and she pointed it at the forest floor. She saw small night time creatures weaving in and out amongst the trees. An owl flew up into the air and into the night sky. Jenny went slightly nearer the forest floor to search for Bo. As she gripped onto her broom and pointed her wand at the floor there came another gunshot. The branch in front of Jenny splintered and Jenny halted. She pointed her wand in the direction of the gunshot. The light from her wand shone straight in the eyes of a Muggle with a gun. He was the local farmer. Jenny flew her broom closer to him.

"Who's that!" The farmer called.

"It's Jenny Lupin. Your neighbour." Jenny called.

"What you doing out? Don't you know there's dangerous creatures about?" He said.

"I know. Petrificus Totallus." Jenny said, pointing her wand at the farmer. "I'm sorry but I have to do this." Jenny lifted the farmer with her wand and flew him out of the forest. She landed on his grounds and looked at the farmer. He was staring at her wide eyed. "None of this is real, this is dream and you've been sleepwalking." She said to him. "Dremato, stupefy." She said gently. The farmer fell unconscious and Jenny picked up her broom quickly. If there were Muggles around she'd need more help.

* * *

James shook his head slightly as Emma fixed her arms around his head and grinned at Jenny. Jenny raised an eyebrow.

"We had to bring the kids. I hope you don't mind. They'll stay here." James said.

"Oh, yeah it's fine. I'll lock up all the doors. Thanks so much for coming to help us. Moony's out searching at the moment" Jenny said.

"It's alright." Lily said. She put Harry down on the sofa and Harry closed his eyes as he slept a bit more. Emma on the other hand seemed so full of energy. She let go of James and dropped to the floor.

"Where Bo?" Emma asked.

"He's busy." Lily answered. "Ok, how are we going to do this? Jenny you have a broom, James, you go as prongs?" Lily suggested. James nodded.

"That's what I was thinking." James said.

"But what about you Lily? You can't fly very well." Jenny said. Lily shrugged.

"I suppose I could transfigure myself into an animal." Lily said.

"Too dangerous." James said. "Lily, you can still fly a little bit right?"

"A little, I'm not that good at flying." Lily said bitterly.

"Well you can take a broom. I'll go home and get my broom" James said. Lily scowled, she didn't like flying, in fact she had a slight fear of heights.

"Alright" Lily muttered as James disapparated. "Emma, you and Harry stay here, ok?" Emma nodded and sat on the sofa.

"Bored." Emma said. Lily looked to Jenny.

"You don't have any toys do you?" Lily asked.

"Emma, go and play in Bo's room." Jenny said gently. Emma jumped up and ran to Bo's room.

"Why'd you call us for help?" Lily asked Jenny as Jenny locked the front door.

"Our neighbours were out wondering around and I thought I might need some extra help trying to find Bo." Jenny said. "He's probably not in any danger but he's never run away from Moony before."

"We have got to get that child drinking the wolfsbane potion again." Lily sighed. There was a loud crack as James apparated into the house again holding his broom that he'd recently bought but didn't need.

"Here." James said, he handed the broom to Lily. "I suppose we better get searching." Jenny nodded. The three adults left the house. James transformed into Prongs. Lily kissed the top of the stag's head before Prongs ran into the forest. Jenny and Lily mounted their brooms and flew in different directions, Lily clutching the broom tightly as it went a bit too fast.

* * *

**A/N:-And there's the Bo chapter....it's got less Bo in it then i expected it to have...whoops. Anyway, if you haven't figured out by now....April's eight months pregnant, which means the children will be born in the next month...story wise, not in reality. Thanks for all your reviews, your'e all so wonderful, keep it up. I've just finished the next chapter and i'll put it up soon, hopefully, if i can get it all sorted out properly. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, this adventure concludes in the next chapter :)**


	13. A Werewolf Adventure

**A Werewolf Adventure**

Emma sat in the middle of Bo's floor feeling bored. These were all boy's toys. Not girl's toys but it was still strangely comforting. Emma stood up and looked around the room and looked at various toys that were around the room. She got up and walked into the living room. This house was strange. It was only on one floor and the rooms were closer together. Emma looked at where his brother lay asleep on the sofa. Emma poked him rather hard but he just rolled over.

"Harry." Emma said. Harry didn't respond. Emma looked at him slightly annoyed and stood in the living room. The TV was off, and she didn't know how to work it. There was nothing to do. Emma started humming as she went back up to Bo's room and closed the door. She climbed on the bed and knelt up by the window, bouncing on the bed slightly. Why had her parent's left her and Harry at Bo's house? Emma crossed her arms on the windowsill with a slight frown on her face. This place was sooo boring. She wanted to go home and play with Baloo.

Emma's eyelids slowly became heavy as she stared outside the window when she heard a loud howl. Emma started awake and stared out of the window. She saw her mum hovering above the forest looking at the floor, other then her mum she couldn't see anything. She was about to close her eyes when she saw a pair of bright yellow eyes staring at her from in the forest. Emma stood up on the bed and looked out even more carefully. There was a big slightly scary looking dog in the trees. Emma grinned, an animal to play with. She jumped off the bed and ran out of the bedroom. She went to the front door and sat on the floor as she put her shoes on. She stood up slowly and looked for her scarf. It was hanging on the banister of the staircase. It was a soft creamy white one that her mum had bought her for Christmas. Emma loved it a lot. She wrapped it around her neck before going to the back door. She wrestled with the door for a moment, trying to open it. After a few minutes Emma looked at the door slightly perplexed.

"Supid door." Emma muttered. She went to the nearest chair and dragged it over to the door and climbed onto it so she could reach the door handle. She turned it and pulled open the door. She climbed off the chair again and moved it away so she could open the door wider. The cold February air blew into the kitchen. Emma hesitated for a moment. That dog had gone. Emma glanced back at the kitchen door then stepped outside. She was bored, she was young and if no one was going to entertain her, she'd entertain herself and go exploring. She'd never been allowed out into the forest before. Emma grinned and brushed some of her red hair out of the way impatiently.

* * *

Lily sighed, she couldn't find Bo, and even if she did there was nothing she could do. She didn't know how to subdue a werewolf. She decided to turn around and get a drink. She glanced at the floor one last time. She saw Prongs walking around in the forest below, alert and grand as usual. Lily felt a slight uneasy feeling inside her and looked to the house. She couldn't see it clearly in the dark. She looked around. She could see Jenny a little way off searching the forest. Lily turned the broom uneasily towards the house. She'd nearly fallen off the damned broom five times that evening. She couldn't fly at all. She'd rather stay on the ground but with two werewolves running around she would rather not take the chance of being found by them.

Lily flew the broom down slowly and touched down on the floor. She put her hand on the door handle and it swung open without her having to turn the doorknob. Lily frowned and went into the house and closed the door behind her. She switched on a light and looked around the room. There was a chair behind the door, there hadn't been one there earlier. Lily dropped the broom and went into the living room. Harry was still lying on the sofa, fast asleep on his front. Lily turned and looked for Emma. She wasn't in this room.

"Emma?" Lily asked. She searched around the house. She wasn't anywhere. There hadn't been any werewolves in here or Harry wouldn't still be breathing. Nothing had been forced open. Lily stopped in the hall and glanced around worriedly.

"Emma!" She said rather loudly. She looked at the front door. There was something missing...

"Damn." Lily said as she noticed Emma's scarf and shoes missing. Lily did up her coat and ran out of the house. Sealing the door by magic so that Harry couldn't get out either. She left the broom discarded and ran out into the forest to look for Emma.

* * *

Emma looked around in the forest. Ok, it was a little scary, just a bit frightening but that's what adventure was for. That's what Harry had always told Emma. She climbed over a fallen tree trunk and landed on the other side with a thud.

"Ow." She muttered as she landed on a rock. She stood up and looked around. Where was she? Emma frowned as she assessed the area she was in. In the end she came to this assessment...big trees, lots of bushes, dark. Emma smiled at her assessment and looked down. The Velcro on her shoes had become undone. She bent over and did up her Velcro shoes. When she looked up she peered into a large pair of yellow eyes. She gave a short shout of surprise and fell backwards against the fallen tree trunk. The creature was the dog like creature Emma had seen. It came up to her waist and it growled at her slightly. Emma's eyes widened. This wasn't good.

"Good doggy." Emma said weakly. The dog type creature crept towards Emma and continued to growl as he approached Emma. Emma pushed herself against the log, she suddenly felt scared...very scared.

"MUMMY!" Emma screamed. She tried to climb over the tree trunk. She tumbled over the top of the trunk and landed on her stomach on the other side of the trunk. The dog creature jumped over the log and put it's front paws on Emma's chest as she rolled over. She screamed again but the creature just looked at her. It lowered its head and sniffed her. It put it's nose against her cheek and sniffed her face. Emma tried to crawl away on her back. The creature leapt off Emma and stood faced Emma as she stood in front of him. She was breathing quickly, she was terrified of this creature. There was a snap of a twig behind the dog creature and it turned to look behind him. Lily appeared from between the trees.

"Emma!" Lily said. She took a step towards Emma but then took a step back as she saw the creature growling. "Bo, down!" Lily said sternly, her voice was shaking slightly. She hadn't forgotten her last encounter with a werewolf.

"Bo?" Emma asked.

"Emma, come this way slowly." Lily said. She had her wand trained on Bo. Bo growled and took a few steps backwards closer to Emma. They heard another snap and both Bo and Lily turned to see a stage coming from Lily's left. He looked at Emma and turned to Lily. Emma grinned and sat down.

"Come Bo." Emma said. She found it rather amusing. If this doggy thing was Bo why were her parent's scared of him. Bo was Bo! He didn't hurt anyone. Bo turned to look at Emma. He growled at Lily and the stag then went to Emma. He put his paws in her lap and lay his head on Emma's lap. Emma laughed happily and stroked Bo's fur.

"Emma, step away from Bo." Lily said uncertainly. The only person who could get near a werewolf was Jenny and that was only because Remus loved her so much that it over took the werewolf instincts to hurt her. What on earth was going on here? Bo looked up slightly and growled at Lily. Lily took another step back. And the stag stepped in front of her and lowered his head so that his antlers were between him and the werewolf.

i Emma, this is Daddy. Bo is very dangerous, let go of him and go to Mummy /i James head filled Emma's head.

"Daddy!" Emma said excitedly. "Look, Bo is a doggy! Like you a beer!"

i No, not beer, now come here Emma, Bo can hurt you very badly. He's a bad doggy /i said James' voice.

"No! Bo good doggy." Emma said.

"Emma please!" Lily said desperately.

i Send sparks to show Jenny where we are. /i said James' voice. Lily nodded and held her wand up. A few golden sparks shot out of the top of her wand and into the sky. Bo leapt to his feet and growled loudly at Lily and the stag. Emma stood up and put her arms around Bo's neck.

"No Bo. Stay here." Emma said.

"Emma." Lily said anxiously. There was a loud crashing sound like some large creature breaking through the trees and bushes of the forest. Lily and the stag looked in the direction. "Moony." Lily said. "Emma! Come to Mummy now!" Lily said urgently.

"No-" Emma was suddenly lifted in the air. Lily and the stag looked in surprise as Jenny dived down and grabbed Emma by the back of her jacket. She took Emma up between the trees and into the sky.

"Bo!" Emma shouted.

"No Emma. Bo is ok." Jenny said. She shifted Emma onto the front of her broom and held her tightly.

* * *

"Shit, it's Moony!" Lily said once she'd realised where Emma had gone. Prongs turned and Lily jumped onto the Stag's back. Bo, obviously very annoyed that Emma had been taken away ran at Lily and Prongs. Prongs started at a run through the trees. Lily kept herself pressed flat against Prong's back. The branches started smashing behind them. Lily risked a glance back and saw Moony running at them. His eyes wide, saliva flying from his mouth. Bo was trying to follow behind but wasn't as fast.

"JAMES HURRY UP!!" Lily screamed as Moony gained distance. Prongs faltered and suddenly went a different direction.

i I'm trying but my antlers are too big /i His anxious voice filled Lily's head. Lily gripped her wand and pointed it backwards. She tried to aim properly as she tried to keep a tight grip on Prongs. Her arm kept shaking up and down.

"Stupefy!" Lily shouted. The red light shot out of her wand and struck a tree just next to Moony. Moony stopped, giving Prongs more time to escape. Lily pulled herself up a little more on Prong's back. She pointed her wand forwards.

"Reducto!" she shouted. The spell hit a tree that was blocking their way and the tree fell over. Prongs jumped over the newly fallen tree. Lily glanced backwards to see if Moony was following. She held her hair back impatiently with her wand hand. Where was Moony? Suddenly Prongs stumbled and fell to the floor. Lily rolled against a tree and hit her head on a root. Prongs stumbled to his feet and seemed to be limping slightly.

"James." Lily said getting up shakily. She went to Prongs.

i Ow, my leg. Something hit it /i James' voice told Lily.

"Lumos." Lily said. A disk of light lit up the floor and shone at a the small werewolf. He was growling at them fiercely and leapt at them. Prongs moved his head in a swinging motion and caught Bo in his antlers. Bo was stopped and Prongs threw him to a clearing a little way off. Prongs took a step so that Lily could get back onto his back but his leg gave way and he stumbled to the floor.

i Crap, Lily check out my back leg /i James told Lily. She nodded and quickly went to his back legs. One of his legs had a set of large bite marks in them and claw scratched up it.

"He's bitten your leg." Lily said. She looked at the approaching Bo. "James, get up, quickly." Prongs tried to get to his feet again but stumbled slightly but managed to stay upright.

i Lily get on! I'll try and get you as far as I can. /i James said. Lily got onto Prongs' back and Prongs limped as fast as he could through the forest. Even though he was injured he was still going rather fast until something knocked him from the side. Causing Lily to land under Prongs as they fell to the floor again. Prongs got up and faced their new threat. Lily got to her feet.

"Shit!" She screamed. Moony growled deeply and looked ready to fight if he needed to. Prongs moved around and revealed a large cut in his side.

"JENNY!" Lily shouted. She threw her wand up and pointed it at the sky. She let off the golden sparks again and then looked at Moony. Lily held her wand out and got ready to fight a battle against a beast she reckoned she'd lose against. Moony jumped at them but was met in mid air by Prongs, who reared up on his hind legs and threw his antlers into Moony's chest. A fight ensued that Lily had difficulty watching. She pressed herself against a tree trunk as Prongs received blow after blow from Moony.

Prongs was beginning to tire when a loud bark rocked the forest. A few branches broke and a rather fat looking Padfoot attacked Moony, wrestling with Moony to keep him down. Lily looked rather amazed. Prongs helped Padfoot by blocking off Moony's escapes. By just watching it, Lily could tell that Prongs and Padfoot still remembered how to keep the werewolf under control. A few leaves fell from the roof of the forest and Jenny landed delicately on her feet.

"Jenny!" Lily said, "Where have you been?"

"Hurry up." Jenny said urgently. She helped Lily onto the broom then kicked off. Lily ducked slightly as they burst through the upper foliage and flew as quickly as she could to the bungalow.

"Why's Padfoot here?" Lily asked.

"We needed the marauders back together!" Jenny said. "I can't control Moony when he's like that. James and Sirius can." Jenny shouted over the noise of the wind. Jenny landed on the floor in the back garden and the two women ran to the back door. Lily wrenched it open and the two of them ran in and sealed it shut with all the spells they knew. Jenny sank to the floor while Lily collapsed into a chair.

"Oh my god, never again!" Lily said. Jenny was breathing heavily.

"Merlin I agree with you!" Jenny said. Lily glanced around the kitchen.

"Where's Emma?" Lily asked, suddenly alert.

"I tied her to the chair in the living room." Jenny said. She got up, using her brook handle as a form of walking stick. Lily got up and went to the living room. Emma was in fact tied to a chair with silver cords. Lily said the counter spell and picked up Emma and hugged her tightly.

"Never ever do that again!" Lily said while hugging her.

"Bo is a cool Doggy!" Emma said happily. "Can see him again?"

"No!" Lily said. "You are not going to go outside again tonight ok!" Lily said. Emma gave her an annoyed look then pointed at Lily's face. "ouchy" She said. Lily put a hand to her face and touched her face. She felt some rough skin there and turned to Jenny.

"Jenny." Lily said to Jenny.

"Yeah." Jenny said turning away from Harry to look at Lily. Harry was still fast asleep.

"Have I hurt myself?" Lily asked. Jenny came closer and nodded.

"A few grazes on your face and you have a slight cut on your forehead." Jenny said. Lily nodded and turned her attention back to Emma. Emma was looking at her slightly guiltily.

"Bo cool doggy." Emma said. Lily took a deep sharp breath and put Emma onto the sofa.

"Sleep Emma. And don't leave this room. When Daddy gets back you are in big trouble!" Lily said. Emma looked like she was going to cry but curled up on the sofa by Harry's feet. Lily looked at Jenny worriedly.

"I hope the guys are ok." Lily said anxiously.

"They'll be alright, they've done this kind of thing before." Jenny said. That didn't comfort Lily at all.

* * *

The next morning Remus woke up in the forest. Bo was curled up a little way away tucked under a log. He had a small blanket wrapped around him to keep him warm. Remus shivered as he felt the freezing morning chill. He sat up and shivered. Someone threw a bag at him. Remus looked up to see Sirius standing above him...rather intimidating with his large belly. Sirius gave Remus a smile.

"Put them on." Sirius said. "There's some clothes for Bo in there as well." Remus frowned.

"What are you doing here?" He asked as he pulled on some underwear.

"We had a slight problem last night. You went crazier then I've ever seen you." Sirius said.

"Why what happened?" Remus asked. He pulled a jumper on and stood up to put some trousers on. Sirius looked at Bo.

"Well, I'm not totally clear on the details but I think Bo escaped last night after your neighbour fired his shotgun. You guys all went to look for him-"

"Guys?" Remus asked. Sirius nodded over to a bit of the ground near the edge of the clearing. Remus raised his eyebrows when he saw James lying on the floor unconscious with cuts and bite marks all over his body.

"Don't worry, he got them as Prongs so he's not hurt. He turned human again soon after Bo turned then passed out." Sirius said. "Lily will patch him up. But them Emma escaped from the house and decided it would be fun to go exploring. She met Bo. Lily and James tried to get her away when you came along all frenzy like. I think Jenny got Emma out but you tried to attack Lily and Prongs. Bo injured Prongs quite badly so when he fought you he was already quite weak."

"Where is Lily?" Remus asked, his voice shaking slightly.

"She's back at the house. Jenny took her back by broom." Sirius said. "Don't worry mate, everything is alright, everyone's alright, except James-" Sirius said uncertainly. "Um, it was too dangerous to take him back during the night and he's too heavy as Prongs for me to take back. He is the biggest animal of us all." Sirius said. Remus went over to Bo and woke him up. Bo shivered until Remus helped Bo into his clothes. Bo stared at James slightly horrified.

"What happened to Uncle James?" Bo asked, looking at Remus.

"Um, something attacked him. Bo you know the way back." Remus said. Bo nodded and climbed over a tree trunk and found a path to get back to the house. Remus turned back to James. Sirius crouched next to James and poked him. James didn't respond.

"We're going to have to carry him. Do you have enough strength to take him back?" Sirius asked Remus.

"I think so." Remus said, "Can't you help?" He asked. Sirius gave Remus a sorry look.

"Lily said if I strain myself doing anything I'm going to really damage my back." Sirius said. Remus frowned and went to James. His shirt was literally shredded to pieces. Remus pulled on James' arm and pulled him up. He put an arm around James and took his weight. James wasn't as heavy as Remus expected him to be but he was still heavy. Sirius helped slightly and they carried James back between them. James' feet were dragging along the floor and his head lolled from side to side. None of them had their wands because of various reasons to do with the full moon. When they came out of the forest Bo had just reached the door and was knocking on it.

"Mummy!" Bo said loudly. He turned then went to his dad and Sirius. They lowered James onto the damp dewy grass of the back garden. "Is he ok?" Bo asked, looking at Remus.

"He should be." Remus said putting a hand on Bo's shoulder. Bo frowned and lifted James' shirt slightly to get a slightly better look at the cuts. The back door opened and Lily and Jenny came out of the house. Bo quickly let go of the shirt and turned around.

"James!" Lily gasped as she ran to James' side. Sirius tried to move over for Lily but failed in his attempt to move. Remus moved over and Lily took his place. She took his hand and looked James over. She looked ready to cry.

"I'm really sorry Lily." Remus said. "I didn't mean for all that to happen." He said to Lily. Lily looked at him alarmed.

"James isn't...he's not dead is he?" She asked with difficulty.

"What? Oh, no. Just passed out." Sirius said.

"What I meant is that I'm sorry I did this to James." Lily turned back to James.

"It's alright, it wasn't your fault." Lily got out her wand and held it shakily above James. "It was..." Lily tried to think of the spell that would get James healed up but her mind was drawing a blank. She dropped the wand and closed her eyes as she tried to compose herself. Sirius glanced at Remus. Remus put a hand on Lily.

"Are you ok?" Remus asked. Lily picked up her wand again.

"Yes, I am, I just need to think clearly." Lily said breathing deeply.

"Why don't we just get a healer from St. Mungos?" Sirius asked.

"I AM A HEALER!" Lily snapped her him.

"Sorry. Yeah I know that, but you know, one that isn't emotionally attached to the patient" Sirius said. Lily glared at him.

"Here, Lily." Jenny said walking to her and crouching. "I still remember the basics. Lets get James back to your house." Lily nodded and stood up. She seemed like she was ready to scream.

"We'll get him to your house, you sort out the kids." Sirius said.

"Alright." Lily said uncertainly. She felt reluctant to leave James, she really didn't want to leave him.

"I'll help Lily." Remus said. Jenny nodded and Remus followed Lily into the house after giving Jenny a quick kiss. Bo took Remus' hand. "Lily, I'm really sorry. I know it's my fault."

"It's fine" Lily said, "It's not me that you've injured...I mean that Moony's injured. Sorry, my mind's a bit weird. My daughter nearly got killed last night and my husband is injured-" Remus gave her an understanding look.

"When you get home, just relax, ok." Remus said. Harry and Emma were still both asleep on the sofa.

"Yeah." Lily said quietly. "I'll owl into work to say I don't feel well." Remus nodded. Lily picked up Emma and let Emma put her head on her shoulder.

"I'll take Harry." Remus said.

"Can I help?" Bo asked Lily. Lily looked down at Bo and gave him an uncertain smile.

"Um, no I've got it thanks." She said to Bo. Bo looked slightly annoyed but then shrugged and turned to the TV. Remus got a fire started in the fireplace and took the lid off the pot off Floo Powder. Lily went first and went straight to Emma's room to put her into the bed. She saw Remus going to Harry's bedroom with Harry, he was followed closely by Bo. Lily turned and went into her own bedroom. Jenny had just lain James on the bed and was doing the healing spells she remembered. Lily stood next to her anxiously.

"Don't worry, he'll be ok. He's just a bit cut up." Jenny said to Lily. Lily nodded, she knew that, her mind knew that but her heart didn't want to listen.

* * *

**A/N:-hahaha I like writing Werewolf escapes, tis fun. I loved writing this chapter. May not be much action in the form of fighting but still some action. I kinda see it as like a high speed chase on Animals through a forest.....hehe. Anyways, thanks for all your reviews....Kaylee, i hope you're happy that I updated. The next Chapter will be the one that I know Kaylee and Jessie have been waiting for....Orion and Rhia get a new sibling(s). That was a fun chappie to write as well. hehe**


	14. The Birth

**This Chapter is for my two friends, Jessie and Kaylee, may you always have a place in this story. **

**

* * *

**

**The Birth**

_**One Month later (March 1986)**_

"Yep, April's alright." Sirius said. "She's complaining so much though."

"So do you." Said Remus as he lay on his stomach on the floor trying to teach Bo how to play chess.

"Yeah but..." Sirius couldn't think of anything to say in his defence.

"Um, how's James?" Remus asked nervously.

"That incident was a month ago!" Sirius said. "Haven't you been around to see them?" Sirius asked.

"Um...no." Remus said. "I'm slightly scared." Remus said.

"Why?" Sirius asked.

"Because it was me that did all that. He's ok right?" Remus asked.

"Yes, James is fine but he's still in bed a lot. Some of the cuts got a bit infected...apparently we should have brought him back to the house straight away." Sirius said, scratching the back of his head. Remus looked at Sirius.

"Really?" Remus said, "What made you think we should have done that?" he said sarcastically.

"Well I'm not the healer here ok! I don't know jack about first aid," Sirius said. He shifted uncomfortably. It still disturbed Remus that Sirius had a huge bump, it was about the same size as April's bump, though April's was still bigger.

"How's April?" Remus asked.

"Oh, as I said, complaining none stop. Ok, I get that she's getting back pains but these kicks. Apparently the baby is incredibly hyperactive. She complains that the kid kicks too much." Sirius said. "I'm just glad that I don't have to feel tha-ow!" Sirius flinched slightly and put his hands to his belly. Remus looked up.

"What is it?" Remus asked.

"My stomach just really hurt." Sirius said. "Ah!" He said with a wince.

"Um, Jenny!" Remus called as he stood up. Bo looked up curiously.

"Yeah?" Jenny said coming into the room. Remus pointed at Sirius as he winced in pain and held his belly.

"Um, what is happening?" Remus asked Jenny.

"Uncle Siri is in pain." Bo said like it was obvious.

"Oh crap, he's getting contractions." Jenny said.

"Oh no!" Sirius shouted as he heard that.

"Remus, get Sirius to St. Mungos and call Lily and tell her what's happening." Jenny picked up her wand.

"Where are you going?" Sirius asked.

"Going to check on April!" Jenny said. She closed her eyes and heard two loud cracks. She opened her eyes and found herself in April's living room. She heard a scream from upstairs.

"April!" Jenny shouted. Orion came running to her as Jenny walked into the hallway.

"Mummy owy" Orion said. He reached up for Jenny to pick him up. Jenny picked him up and went up the stairs. April was in Rhia's room. Rhia was looking rather alarmed and held a book in her hands. April had her face twisted in pain.

"April." Jenny said going to April. Jenny put Orion on the floor and then held April's hand.

"It's coming." April said through clenched teeth. "Jenny, get me to St. Mungos, please!" Jenny nodded and looked at Orion and Rhia.

"You two stay in this room. Rhia, make sure Orion stays here." Rhia nodded and went to Orion. She put her arms around Orion and looked at Jenny anxiously. Jenny felt glad that Rhia seemed to trust her enough to do as she said. "Come on." Jenny said, helping April up. "Remus has taken Sirius to St. Mungos already."

* * *

Lily sat in the staff room reading Witch weekly. She was trying desperately to get a song out of her head that her beautiful daughter got stuck in there. She knew she'd been wrong to buy Emma that damned Mary Poppins video last week. She hadn't shut up since she'd bought it. Lily vaguely remembered liking it but god, the songs were annoying!

"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious! Even though the sound of it, is something quite atrocious-" She sang under her breath as she read the magazine. She turned the page when a nurse ran into the room.

"Lily, April's in. She's going into labour!" said the nurse. Lily looked up and slammed the magazine on the table.

"Is she ok?" Lily asked, as she picked up her healer cloak and wrapped it around her.

"Well, we've given her some pain relieving potion. Gordon wants you to go and see her. April refuses to have anyone but you deliver her twins." Janice said.

"Ok, which delivery ward?" Lily asked as they left the staff room

"Number six." Janice told Lily. Lily hurried to the ward.

"If you say it loud enough, You'll always sound precocious. Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!" Lily sang as she hurried to the ward. Janice gave her a strange look. Lily shook her head. "It's my daughter's fault. It's a Muggle movie she's been watching."

"What's a movie?" Janice asked.

"Never mind" Lily said. She pushed the door open and went into room six. April was lying on the bed, her face was twisted in pain.

"April, I'm here." Lily said gently walking over to April.

"Thank Merlin!" April muttered between gritted teeth. Lily tried to block out the stupid song while she was in the delivery room.

"Everything ready?" Lily asked. Her healer mentor walked into the room and looked at Lily.

"I've come to help." He said.

"No you've come to stare at my arse, you do it every time" Gordon grinned and shrugged.

"It's a nice arse" Gordon said.

"WILL YOU STOP FLIRTING AND DELIVER THIS DAMNED BABY!" April shouted.

"Sorry." Lily said. "Ok, just breath and push. You remember what you did for Orion and Rhia." April nodded and started breathing rhythmically. The door suddenly opened and Sirius walked into the room, wincing slightly. He looked like he was really trying not to shout in pain. He collapsed in a chair next to April's bed.

"Who are you?" Gordon asked.

"He's the father." Lily said.

"Why's he...oh, pregnancy bump." Gordon said smirking as he saw Sirius' belly. "You're in for a rough ride, mr. Black." He turned to Lily, who was trying not to smile. "Ok, lets get these babies out." He said. Lily glanced at April but she didn't seemed to have picked up on the plural use of that word.

* * *

"Ok, April just push, I can see it's head." Lily said. April had been in labour for about seven hours now and it had already gone past midnight. Lily was getting incredibly tired, god knew how April felt. Rhia and Orion had never taken this long to deliver!

"I can't." April said tiredly as she felt her body beginning to give up.

"Just push once more. SHUT UP SIRIUS!" Lily snapped. She brushed a lock of her auburn hair out of her face and stared at Sirius. He had been moaning loudly the whole time.

"It hurts!" Sirius said. "How do women cope!"

"They're stronger then us." Gordon said. This got a happy look from both Lily and Janice, who was also in the room.

"Oh, here comes the head" Lily said suddenly. "April just one last push." April tried to push again with all her strength. She gripped onto Sirius' hand tightly. Lily thought she heard a crack coming from Sirius' hand. Sirius became even louder and Gordon put his hands over his ears. April was in too much pain to notice and Janice was quietly clamping her ears as well. Unfortunately Lily didn't have the luxury, she was trying to get the baby out. Soon the baby was out and Lily grinned. She looked at Janice, who grinned as well.

"Is it out!" April asked.

"Yes she is." Lily said. "You've had a lovely baby girl." She said.

"Oh thank Merlin it's over" April said lying back in the bed. Sirius pulled his hand free and shook it slightly.

"Shit, you killed my hand!" Sirius said to April.

"You're in a hospital Sirius." Lily said. "Um, April, you can't have too much of a rest" She added uncertainly.

"What?" April asked, looking at Lily over her legs. Lily and Gordon looked at each other.

"You tell her." Lily said.

"Why, you're her best friend." Gordon said.

"LILY!" April shouted at her. Lily looked at April uncertainly.

"Ok, promise you won't get too angry with me?" Lily asked. April glared at her. "Um...well I've known for a while. You aren't having one child." Lily said.

"What?" April asked in a dangerous voice.

"Um...well...you're having twins" Lily said.

"WHA-AH!" April screamed as she went back into Labour. Lily handed the first baby to Janice and went back to helping April through the birth. Sirius went back into his shouts of pain. Gordon got out his wand and pointed it at Sirius.

"STUPEFY!" He shouted over the noise that was being made. The noise suddenly decreased by half as Sirius fell unconscious.

"Oh thank Merlin." Janice sighed as she cleaned up the first baby.

"Oh, this next one is coming out quickly" Lily said as she saw the head of the second baby appearing. "April a few more pushes then you can relax. I promise." Lily said.

"You-are-going-to-die-Lily." April said between pushes.

"I know." Lily said. She began singing again quietly as the baby came out. Gordon gave her a weird look but dismissed it. As soon as the baby's head was out the room was filled with the sounds of baby's crying. "April again!" Lily said loudly. April pushed again and the baby came out and Lily held her in her hands. This baby was really crying her lungs out. She was so damned loud! Louder then Sirius had been, if that was possible. Lily handed her to Janice and Janice cleaned her up, wincing slightly as the noise was hurting her ears.

"WELL DONE!" Lily shouted to April over the noise. April had just completely relaxed on the bed. April looked at her, unable to hear her. Lily held out her hands and gave April two thumbs up. April nodded and let her head drop onto the pillow. Lily felt a tapping on her shoulder and she turned to see Gordon holding the quieter baby. Lily took her and Gordon turned to pick up the one that was still screaming. They went to April, who was pushing herself up into a sitting position. She took both babies. Once they were in April's arms the one that was screaming calmed down and went quiet.

"Merlin, does loudness run in your family?" Janice asked, not meaning to be offensive. April smiled and nodded.

"Yeah." She said. She looked at Lily, "They're beautiful aren't they?" Lily sat on the bed next to April.

"Are you upset you were pregnant now?" Lily asked, brushing some of April's blonde hair away from her sweat covered face.

"No." April said. "But no more." Lily laughed and kissed April's forehead. Gordon raised an eyebrow at this.

"Yes we are lesbians" Lily said tiredly at Gordon. Gordon laughed.

"Haha, very funny. Are you really?" He asked. Lily rolled her eyes and turned back to April.

"What are you going to call them?" Lily asked.

"Kaylee and Jessie." April said. "The quiet one is Jessie, the other one is Kaylee." Lily laughed.

"Aren't you going to consult Sirius?" Lily asked

"No. He named Rhia and Orion while I was sleeping so I'm naming these two." April said with a smile. She looked at Lily with a happy smile. Lily hugged her tightly.

"So when the cat has got your tongue, there's no need for dismay, just summon up this word and then you've got a lot to say But better use it carefully-" Lily stopped herself from screaming. "That's it! I'm getting rid of that damned video!" She said getting up. April laughed tiredly.

"Emma?" April asked. Lily nodded.

"Anyway, I think that you should rest now." Gordon said. "And we'll tend to the babies and get your husband all sorted out." He said. April looked at the twins and reluctantly let Lily take them from her.

"Don't worry, they'll be with you when you wake up." Lily said. April gave her a sceptical look but nodded.

"Alright."

"And we'll bring Rhia and Orion over once Sirius is awake." Lily said. April gave her a grateful smile.

"Can I see Jessie and Kaylee again?" April asked, sitting up slightly straighter. Lily shook her head in amusement and took the babies over again. They had a few small tufts of very light blond hair on their heads. They were going to look like April, no doubt about it. Well, more like they were going to look like Rhia.

* * *

Rhia and Orion sat on April's legs watching the babies with amazement.

"Jessie?" Orion asked pointing to the baby that April was holding.

"No, Kaylee." April said with a smile.

"Hold." Orion said holding out his hands. April shook her head.

"Not yet Orion, you're not strong enough." April said. Orion crawled up April's legs and sat closer to Kaylee and gently poked her face.

"No poky" Rhia said, as she moved up as well. "Like this." Rhia said. Rhia gently stroked Kaylee's face. Orion grinned and copied Rhia. Kaylee was staring at Orion and Rhia curiously as they kept touching her. Their new baby sister! There was a soft groan from the chair next to the bed. Gordon Ramsay had put Sirius in a chair next to April's bed once he had healed Sirius' hand. April looked at Sirius as he opened his eyes.

"Hey." April said, "Awake at last." Sirius looked at her sleepily.

"Huh?" Sirius asked. "What? How did I get here?" He asked as he looked around.

"Healer Ramsay stunned you." April said. Sirius looked at his body and jumped up in happiness.

"NO MORE BUMP!" He shouted, Rhia and Orion looked at Sirius as Sirius did some strange dance thing. "Oh yeah! Oh yeah!"

"SH! Daddy, Jessie sleeping!" Rhia said harshly to Sirius. Sirius looked at her then at the baby in April's arms. His grin widened, if that was possible.

"Oh, baby. So you called her Jessie?" Sirius asked sitting down next to April.

"No!" Orion said like his dad was stupid. "This Kaylee." Sirius looked at April for an explanation.

"Um, Sirius." April said. She leant forwards and gave him a kiss. "We had twins. This is Kaylee and Jessie is sleeping in the cot there." April said pointing to a cot at the end of the bed. Sirius' mouth fell open.

"T-t-twins?" He asked. Rhia nodded happily.

"Two baby sisters!" Rhia said with a grin. Sirius' eyes fluttered shut and he fell to the floor. Orion and Rhia looked in alarm and Orion peered over the edge of the bed.

"Daddy?" Orion said uncertainly. April frowned.

"Um, Rhia, could you go outside and get the healer?" April said. Rhia nodded and climbed off the bed and went to the door. She pushed it open with some effort and disappeared for a second before appearing again and running back to April.

"Don't want to go. Scary." She said as she climbed back up. She sat next to April and hugged April. April put an arm around Rhia.

"Ok, could you just get my wand from that table there" April said, nodding to a small sliding table at the end of her bed. Rhia nodded and crawled carefully over April's legs and picked up the wand. She handed it to Orion who grinned and waved it around.

"Magic!" Orion said. April took the wand before Orion could do anything. She pointed her wand at Sirius and made him float in the air. She made him go to an empty bed in the ward and lay him down on it. Orion held onto Kaylee's hand and pulled her gently towards him.

"Cuddle." Orion said. April carefully lifted Kaylee into Orion's arms. Orion grinned and stared at his little sister. Kaylee stared back at him with a vaguely confused expression. Rhia went back to April and settled in her arms. April held her tightly as Rhia put her head against her chest.

"Why daddy sleeping?" Rhia asked.

"Because he's shocked." April said with a tired smile. The door to the ward opened and Jenny came in with Remus. Bo was probably at school so he wasn't with them.

"Hi." Jenny said. "You look great for having just given birth." April smiled.

"I'm thin again!" She said with a grin. Jenny laughed.

"So, what have you called your baby?" Remus asked.

"Well that one is Kaylee" April said pointing to the one that Orion was hugging. "And that's Jessie." April said. Remus looked like he'd misheard.

"Twins?" Remus asked. April gave him a slight smile.

"You've had twins and you're ok with it?" Jenny asked uncertainly. April shrugged.

"I don't know but there's nothing I can do now. And they're beautiful. Rhia and Orion love them" April said. She took Kaylee back as Orion decided to see if he could see up her nose. Jenny smiled.

"How did Sirius take it?" Remus asked. April nodded towards Sirius. Remus looked and laughed. "Fainted?" He asked.

"Yep." April said. "The wonderful fantastic Sirius has fainted like a girl." She smiled.

"Well, at least you've got your sense of humour back." Jenny said, "Can I hold her?" She asked eagerly.

"Be careful. She's not even a day old yet." April said anxiously as Jenny picked up Kaylee. Jenny held Kaylee and smiled at her. Kaylee seemed to smile slightly before opening her mouth. She immediately began to scream.

"Ah!" Remus said in shock. He covered his ears. April took Kaylee back quickly and rocked her gently. Kaylee went quiet and closed her eyes. She went quiet in April's arms and was soon asleep.

"Sorry." April said. "Kaylee seems to do that to everyone. Jessie's quieter, a lot quieter."

"Really?" Remus asked. "I would think that as children of you two they'd be loud" He said with a smirk.

"Well she's been asleep since she came out." April said.

"Kaylee." Orion said wanting to hold his baby sister. It seemed a novelty to him. He was a big brother, he seemed to like that.

"Could you put Kaylee in the cot?" April asked.

"Sure." Jenny said. She carefully took Kaylee. A bit more weary then last time. Kaylee seemed fast asleep and didn't make a single noise. As soon as Jenny had put Kaylee into the cot she turned to April.

"So, how are you doing?" Remus asked.

"I'm tired." April said. "But I can't go to sleep until Sirius wakes up." She said.

"Why?" Jenny asked, she sat on the bed.

"Well I can't leave the children on their own and Rhia doesn't like being with other adults." April said. As if to prove the point Rhia cuddled April a bit more and closed her eyes. Jenny nodded.

"Oh, that's a bit of a problem then." Jenny said. "Do you need us to do anything?" She asked.

"No, I'm fine. Thanks for coming." April said.

"We want to see our best friends' children." Remus said. "They're so cute."

"So are Lily and James their godparents again?" Jenny asked with a smirk. April nodded.

"Lily went home to talk to James about it. He might come by later...depending if he can get out of bed yet." April said. Remus scowled and cleared his throat uncomfortably.

"It's ok Remus, they don't blame you, actually Lily's blaming herself." April said. "She says it's her fault for leaving James on his own to fight you."

"Yeah, but it was still me who did all that to him." Remus said. Jenny took Remus' hand and gave it a squeeze.

"Remus, it wasn't your fault." Jenny said. "Actually, James seems to be making a joke about it." Jenny said with a smile. "Anyway, I have to go. I've got a job interview with Gringotts." Jenny said.

"Oh, what are you going to do?" April asked.

"Kinda like a managing position. I'm not sure if I'll get it yet." Jenny said modestly.

"You'll get it." April said.

"Definitely." Remus said. He gave Jenny a kiss as she started to leave.

"I'll see you at home." She said to Remus. "April, I hope you'll be alright soon. You really look like you need some rest."

"I'll be alright." April said. "I've lived on no sleep in a week." Jenny smiled and left the room. "So Remus." April said, pulling Rhia onto her lap and letting her rest against her body.

"April." Remus said. Remus sat down in the seat that Sirius had been in earlier.

"How's your love life?" April asked with a grin. Remus gave her an amused look. "Lack of sleep ok! I can't be bothered to start up a proper conversation."

"Why don't you sleep and I'll keep watch over the kids?" Remus asked. April shrugged.

"I don't know." April said uncomfortably. "Ok, alright." She said.

"Orion." Remus said. Orion looked at Remus curiously. "Do you want to go get something to eat?" He asked. Orion grinned.

"Yes." He said.

"Ok, Rhia?" Remus said to Rhia but Rhia appeared to be asleep. April smiled.

"Leave her, look after Orion for me." April said.

"Alright. Come on Orion." Remus said, standing up.

"Turn around." Orion said. Remus frowned but turned around. Orion jumped onto Remus' back and wrapped his arms around Remus' neck. "Go!" He said. April and Remus laughed.

"Ok, April, sleep!" Remus said to April.

"Yes sir!" April said. Remus smirked and shook his head as he went to the door

* * *

April woke up to a camera flash. She frowned and opened her eyes slowly. Sirius was grinning over her.

"Hey." He said. He bent down and gave her a kiss.

"What time is it?" April asked.

"Um...lunch time." Sirius said looking at his watch. "So, we got you this." Sirius said. Pointing at the end of the bed

"We?" April asked sitting up.

"Yeah, me, Rhia, Orion and Emma." Sirius said.

"Emma's here?" April asked. She felt slightly disoriented even though she'd only been asleep.

"Yeah, James came by to see you and dropped Emma off so that he could go and see Lily." Sirius said.

"Right." April said. She sat up and looked at the end of the bed. On the small table there was some lovely looking warm food. There was a glass of pumpkin juice and a bowl of ice cream. Jessie and Kaylee were still asleep in their cot.

"We were going to get this food and guess who we found in a store cupboard." Sirius said with a grin. April's mind was working really slow, was she supposed to know?

"Who?"

"Well it seems that James is now well enough to go romping around the hospital with" Sirius said with a smirk.

"No way." April said with a smirk.

"Yes way. The expressions on Lily and James' faces when we caught them." Sirius said with a grin and a shake of his head.

"We?" April asked again.

"Yeah, me and the kids." Sirius said. "I think Emma may be slightly scarred." He said with a chuckle.

"Mummy and daddy were all red." Emma said. "Why?" Sirius laughed.

"I love this girl." He said. The door to the ward opened and Lily and James walked in.

"Sirius you are an evil bastard." James said cuffing Sirius upside the head. Sirius laughed.

"Well, you know, a hospital mate..." Sirius said knowingly. "And Lily in her healer uniform...who can resist a girl like that?" Sirius said. April laughed slightly. Lily gave him an unamused look before looking at her uniform.

"Damn, a button's gone missing on my skirt." She muttered.

"Don't worry, we're all friends here." Sirius said with a grin. This time it was April's turn to hit him

"I'm laying right here!" April said.

"Sorry." Sirius said. "But can you resist Lily? I mean she's Lily!"

"Thank you for that Sirius." Lily said with a fake smile as she used magic to stop her skirt from falling down. "But I belong to one person only." Lily said. James grinned and put his arm around Lily's shoulders as she let her hair down.

"Now why don't you wear your hair like that more often." James asked, kissing the top of her jaw. Lily fought to keep the smile off her face.

"Because it gets in the way." Lily said. "James-" Lily pushed James away. "I'm working. Now April, you don't mind if I steal your babies for a few minutes to give them a check. I was going to come earlier but James distracted me." April smiled knowingly.

"Um, if you need to. But I want to see them again soon." April said. Rhia and Emma were currently looking in the cot as Lily went and picked up Jessie in one arm. She carefully picked up Kaylee in her other arm. Jessie woke up with the movement and looked at Lily. Lily gave her a quick smile and left the room after saying bye to the others and that she'd be back. James leant against the bed watching.

"Do you think I should get her pregnant again?" James asked. "She's so amazing when she's being a mum." Sirius grinned and nudged James.

"It's up to you mate. The men have control-ow!" Sirius looked at April as he rubbed his arm.

"Just making a point" April said with a smile. Rhia and Emma laughed at their parents. Orion grinned and dipped his finger into the ice cream.

* * *

**A/N:-After INTENSE peer pressure from Kaylee and Jessie, I've finally updated...even though it's only been like a day! Anyway, yes...if you want someone in this story named after you, I will do it, my reader Rhia asked if i cud do so so i did. Kaylee and JEssie asked, so i did. If it fits in with teh story then i can name a kid after you. Anyway, that was just a one chapter for the ickle babies. The next chapter will be when they're six months old...it was sooo much fun to write. I'm glad to see that you enjoyed the last chapter**

**Also HELLO ANGELOFLILY!! my faithful reader, who has been with me since the beginning...or there abouts -gives AngelOfLily a hug- you are my most faithfulllest reader...you even came over to read this version.....ah -gives another hug- ok, well i'm going to go to bed now. toodles**


	15. The Parent Trap

**Parent Trap**

Sirius rolled over in his bed, arching his arm over and expecting it to land on April but there was nothing there in the bed next to him. Sirius lifted himself up slightly, his hair completely messed up from sleeping. He rolled over in his bed and looked towards the dressing table. April was tying her hair up quickly. She was wearing a pair of jeans and a dark top.

"April, come back to bed, it's only-" Sirius looked at the clock. "SIX A M. Merlin's beard, April get back to bed!" Sirius said. April turned to him and put a finger against her lips.

"You'll wake up Kaylee and Jess. I just managed to get Kaylee back to sleep" April said. Sirius got out of bed, he was only wearing his boxers. He put his arms around April and began to lift her shirt off. April shrugged him away and pulled her shirt back down.

"I can't Sirius, I have to get to work." April said sadly.

"Work?" Sirius asked.

"Yes, you know that place I go to get money?" April asked with a smile. She pulled her auror robes off the back of the door. "You have to look after the twins today. Lily's going to come round to take Orion and Rhia to their play groups." April said. She pulled on her robes and pressed a kiss against Sirius' lips. Sirius still looked a bit stunned that April was going to work.

"But-" Sirius started to say. "You haven't worked in over a year!"

"I know, and they need me back." April said. "Don't worry, I'll be home in time to make you dinner" April said with a smirk. She kissed Sirius again. "I love you." She said. Sirius stood up properly as April apparated out of the house. He turned to the two sleeping girls in their cot. He glanced into the cot and looked at the two identical girls. Which one was Kaylee again? He frowned slightly and turned back to bed. He dropped into April's side and pulled the duvet over him and was about to close his eyes when-

"Daddy daddy daddy!" shouted Orion as he ran into the room and jumped up on Sirius' bed. Sirius groaned and pulled a pillow over his head. Orion laughed and pulled the pillow away.

"What is it Orion?" Sirius asked.

"Daddy." Orion said, drawing out the word.

"What?" Sirius snapped slightly.

"TV." Orion said.

"Ok, whatever. You know how to work the damned thing." Sirius said. Orion grinned and jumped off the bed and landed on the floor. He was about to run out of the room when he swerved to go to the cot and looked at his sisters. He seemed to know which twin was Kaylee because he stuck his arm through the bars in the cot and poked one. She woke up and immediately began crying loudly.

"Arg!" Sirius said pulling the duvet off and throwing it to the side. "Orion!" He shouted. Orion laughed and left the room as quickly as he could. Sirius went to the cot and picked up the crying girl. "It's ok Kaylee. It's just your brother being stupid" Sirius rocked Kaylee quietly in his arms. She put her head against Sirius' chest and her crying seemed to cease slightly. Sirius went over to the bed and put Kaylee gently on it. He went back over to the cot where Jessie had just woken up as well. He picked her up and took her to the bed.

Kaylee was just trying to sit herself up and had just managed to sit up when she fell backwards again. Sirius laughed slightly and helped Kaylee up. Jessie seemed to sit up perfectly fine on her own. She watched as Sirius slowly let go of Kaylee. Kaylee stayed sitting for a moment of two before slowly losing her balance and falling backwards. Sirius smiled and put a pillow behind Kaylee. This was enough to help her keep her balance.

"Ok, so you are Kaylee." Sirius said. He felt like getting a pen and writing K on her forehead and J on Jessie's forehead. How could Rhia, Orion and April tell which one was which? Sirius looked at the two carefully. Was there any distinguishing features between the two? Sirius looked at Kaylee closely then at Jessie. Jessie grinned a toothless grin and poked Sirius, she just missed Sirius' eye and poked him between the eyes.

"Ow." Sirius said. Jessie laughed and waved her hands at Sirius. Sirius grinned. "You're cute." He said. The door opened and Rhia walked in tiredly.

"RHIA!!" Sirius said loudly. Rhia jumped slightly then grinned. She went to the bed and sat on Sirius back.

"Daddy!" Rhia said. "Can I play with Jess and Kay?" She asked.

"If you want." Sirius said. Rhia rolled off Sirius' back. Sirius got up as Rhia played with Jessie and Kaylee on the bed. Sirius pulled on a pair of trousers that were slung over one end of the cot and pulled them on before heading to the windows to open them. It was too stuffy in the room. It was summer, well the end of it. It was September now. About two weeks from Orion's birthday. Sirius picked up a shirt and pulled it on.

"Um, Rhia, what time does Lily come to pick you up?"

"Eight." Rhia answered. She was playing peek-a-boo with the two twins and both were laughing as Rhia seemed to disappear and reappear. Sirius smiled and picked up the twins in mid laughter.

"Come on, lets all go downstairs and join Orion in front of the TV." Sirius said.

"But TV is boring." Rhia complained.

"No it's not. TV is brilliant." Sirius said, "Best thing since quidditch."

"Oh, can we go fly?" Rhia asked with a wide smile.

"No." Sirius said. Rhia pouted angrily and followed Sirius downstairs. They walked into the living room as an all too familiar theme tune came on.

"No!" Rhia complained as she heard it. Orion turned around and grinned.

"Star wars!" He said.

"We watch Cinderella!" Rhia said.

"No! Star wars!" Orion said. Rhia went to their collection of Videos, most of them belonged to the Potters. Rhia pulled out a video that had a picture of a girl in a torn dress with Cinderella on it.

"Cinderella!" Rhia said.

"No!" Orion shouted. Rhia went to take out Orion's video when Orion got up and clocked Rhia. "STAR WARS"

"NO CINDERELLA!" Rhia shouted back. Sirius frowned and put the twins on the sofa to attend to Rhia and Orion.

"Rhia, Orion!" He said. He pulled them apart and held one under each arm.

"I want to watch Cinderella!" Rhia said. "But Orion watch Star wars."

"Star wars good!" Orion said angrily. "Cinderella is icky!"

"No!" Rhia said.

"Rhia, Orion!" Sirius said. "Orion, will you let your sister watch her video" Sirius said painfully. He had to agree with Orion that Cinderella was icky, as he put it. "You watched Star wars all yesterday." Orion seemed to growl at Rhia and Rhia sneered back at him. Sirius gently and cautiously put his two children on the ground. Rhia ran straight for the VHS player and pressed the eject button. Orion ran after her to prevent her from taking out the video. Sirius dived after Orion and wrestled his son to the ground.

"Orion! It's Rhia's turn to watch her video" Sirius said. Orion struggled slightly until Sirius picked him up. Rhia gave Orion a smug smile and sat down in front of the TV as the Disney tune came on. Orion made a disgruntled noise and sat on the sofa. Sirius let out a long breath of relief. He turned to the twins to see them both laughing slightly. He smiled. Now, to get their breakfasts ready. Sirius went pale...that meant cooking!

* * *

"Sirius, are you sure you'll be alright looking after these two?" Lily asked. She was standing in the doorway. It was quite windy outside so her hair was flying around her face like it was nobody's business. Impatiently she ran her hands through it and held it, bunched together in her right hand.

"I'll be fine Lily" Sirius said. He had Jessie in his arms and gave Lily a smile. Lily looked at Sirius with a raised eyebrow and rolled her eyes.

"Well I've got the day off, you know where I'll be if you need me." Lily said. Sirius smiled.

"Cool. Orion, Rhia!" Sirius called. Rhia came running up with a small back pack on her back.

"School?" She asked.

"Yes, school." Lily said. She gave Rhia a smile. Rhia grinned back and looked outside to where Emma was busy poking Harry then running away to hide behind the gate. Rhia ran over to Emma and they grinned at each other. They'd been going to school for a total of one week and they loved it. Orion looked at Lily.

"Thanks for taking them to school." Sirius said.

"No problem. Have fun, and remember which one is which." Lily said pointing to Jessie.

"Don't worry, Kaylee and I know who each other are." Sirius said. Lily let out an amused cough.

"That one is Jessie, Sirius." Lily said before giving him a smile and leaving the house, holding Orion's hand. Sirius frowned and looked at Jessie. Jessie beamed at him. How did people tell the difference between them? Sirius wondered. He closed the door and went back to the living room. Kaylee was sitting on the sofa talking and gurgling to herself. Sirius sometimes wondered if there was something wrong with Jessie sometimes, or even Kaylee. Jessie never spoke, Kaylee spoke non-stop...

"AHA!" Sirius shouted, making both baby girls jump in surprise. "You don't talk." Sirius said to Jessie. Jessie seemed to look at him confused. Sirius looked at Kaylee. "And you..." He said. He put Jessie down on the sofa and looked at Kaylee. "You talk all the time." Kaylee beamed and held her arms out for a cuddle as Jessie held out her arms as well.

"Err..." Sirius said slightly confused, how was he going to hold two kids at the same time? "Oh, you two are going to annoy me." Both twins gave him cheeky, toothless baby grins.

Kaylee bounced on Sirius' back as he lay on the floor, hitting his head against it. The twins were driving him mad. True, they weren't even six months old, yes they didn't really have much of a mind to cause trouble but they were driving him around the bend! They answered to each other's names, so Kaylee would look at Sirius when he called Jessie and vice versa, then they'd look at him when they called them their proper names. It was just so annoying!

"Milk?" Sirius asked them at Lunchtime. Jessie looked at Sirius confused while Kaylee gave a little

"Eh?" Sirius threw up his hands.

"You don't drink milk anymore do you?" Sirius asked. He went to the fridge, "Now where's that baby food?" Behind him Jessie and Kaylee looked at each other in baby confusion. "There it is!" Sirius said. He emerged from the fridge with two small jars of baby food. He read the labels.

"Peach and apricot...sounds good" He shrugged. He looked at the other one, "sweet corn and peas...hm..." Sirius opened the jar and sniffed it. "It smells ok." He got some teaspoons and sat down next to Kaylee and Jessie's high chairs.

"Ok, here we go." Sirius said. He'd tried to feed Kaylee before, but that was when he and April were trying to wean the twins off her breasts and onto Bottle milk. Kaylee had been so...difficult, that the milk had ended up all over the TV. As a result they'd had to call Lily to try and figure out how to tell the repairman what to say as Orion and Rhia got stressed with them. Kaylee gave Sirius a mischievous smile.

"Oh, no, I'm feeding Jessie first." Sirius said turning around and facing Jessie. He got a small teaspoon of the baby food and held it to Jessie's mouth. Jessie ate it and grinned. She opened and closed her mouth as if she wanted more. Sirius smiled, this was going ok. He got another teaspoon and held it to Jessie's mouth. As she was about to eat it, something hit Sirius' head.

"Ow!" Sirius put the spoon and food down and looked at the floor. There was a teaspoon on the floor. Sirius looked at Kaylee. Kaylee was staring in a trance like state out of the window. Sirius narrowed his eyes and turned back to Jessie.

"Ok, here you go, open your mouth Jessie, here's comes the broom." He said, moving the spoon to her mouth again. And again something hit Sirius' back followed by a smash. Sirius turned to see baby food smeared all on the floor. Sirius looked in alarm then turned to Kaylee. Kaylee's mouth was curved up in a smile.

"Ok, no food for you-ow!" Sirius turned to Jessie, who was looking at him impatiently. "What?"

"oo" Jessie said. Sirius' mouth dropped open. Did Jessie actually make some kind of a noise? Jessie gave Sirius an annoyed look.

"Ok, yeah sorry." Sirius said handing her the spoon again. Jessie are the food off that as the kitchen was filled with a loud high pitched scream. "WHAT IS IT KAYLEE?" Kaylee wriggled in her high chair. Sirius rolled his eyes and picked up Kaylee and set her on the floor. Kaylee grinned and lay down. Sirius turned to feed Jessie the rest of the jar of baby food.

Kaylee rolled over to the nearest draws and attempted to open them. She rolled because she couldn't crawl yet. She put her hands against the doors and attempted to stand up very very shakily. She held onto the small door handle and pulled it open as she fell backwards onto her bum. The door opened and revealed a set of shiny kitchen pots and pans. Kaylee rolled closer and reached into the cupdboards. She held onto a black handle type thing and pulled it. She fell backwards as the pans fell out of the cupboard with a series of clangs. Kaylee liked the loud noises, she grinned and sat herself up again. She attempted to turn over so she was on hands and knees. Her arms shook slightly as she moved one forwards, she moved a leg forwards and moved forwards a bit. She grinned even more as the young girl began to crawl.

She picked up the spoon that she had thrown at her dad earlier then returned to the fallen pots and pans. She sat down and pulled a pot near her. She raised the spoon and brought it down, very hard against the bottom of the pan. It made a loud clashing noise. Kaylee laughed and started hitting it faster. Sirius turned around and looked at her.

"Kaylee!" Sirius said. Kaylee looked at Sirius but continued to hit the bottom of the pan. Jessie started laughing and began wriggling in her seat. Sirius looked at her and tried to catch her before she seemed to slip out under the front of her seat...how did she manage that? Sirius wondered. Jessie was crawling over to where Kaylee was and sat down. She picked up a handle of a small pan and began hitting it against the floor.

"Jessie, Kaylee, bad babies!" Sirius said as he got up and went to the twins. He picked up Jessie and then put an arm around Kaylee and picked her up. Kaylee let out a shriek and clutched onto the pan and spoon. The pan came up with Kaylee and she began hitting it while being held by Sirius. Sirius twisted around slightly, preventing Kaylee from hitting the pan.

"Weeee!" Kaylee squealed as she spun around slightly. She dropped the pan and Sirius let out a triumphant cry. This didn't stop Kaylee though. As Sirius shifted the twins so he could hold them properly Kaylee began hitting Sirius around the head with the spoon. Jessie started laughing and started hitting Sirius with her hands.

"Ow, ow, OW!!" Sirius said as Jessie accidentally poked his eye. Jessie laughed and Sirius took them back to the living room. Sirius put them both on the sofa, both looking at him innocently, with their big brown eyes, tufts of dark blond hair and chubby baby faces. Sirius found it difficult to stay annoyed at them.

"Oh, I'll just let you watch a TV show." Sirius said. He turned on the TV as he heard a loud fart like noise. He sniffed the air and wrinkled up his nose. "Urgh!" He turned and looked at the twins. Kaylee looked slightly ill while Jessie had a look of slight shock on her face. Sirius carefully approached the twins and sniffed.

"Which one of you was it?" He asked. He picked up Jessie and smelled her, no, she smelt fine. He picked up Jessie but held her out at arms distance, he didn't need to smell her to tell that she'd just pooped in her nappy. He carefully placed her on her back on the floor and from arms length, began to undo her nappy. He took one look at what was in it before covering up his mouth. Normally he had a strong stomach. He could take a lot of things, blood, gore, fights but a soiled nappy...

Sirius got up and picked up the phone and punched in a number. The phone rang.

"Lily Potter who-"

"Lily, I need your help." Sirius said.

* * *

April apparated home. It was about six in the evening and it was too quiet. April went into the living room to see Sirius stretched out over the sofa asleep. April's expression went serious, where were the children. She really hoped that Sirius would be able to look after them, just this once. She wanted to trust him, honestly she did. She was more then willing now to give him the chance because she knew that she couldn't handle the four children without his help. She went up to Sirius and hit his face gently. Sirius groaned.

"Five more minutes." He muttered before rolling towards the back of the sofa.

"No Sirius, now." April said. Sirius' eyes opened wide and he sat up.

"April." Sirius said with a nervous smile.

"Where are the children?" April asked.

"Um, well..." Sirius said.

"Don't tell me you lost them?" April said with her arms crossed.

"No, no. I'm not that stupid."

"Ok, where are they?" April asked.

"Lily has the twins." Sirius said.

"And the other two?" April asked. Sirius' eyes widened even more.

"Damn it!" He shouted as he got to his feet and started for the door.

"Where are they Sirius!" April demanded.

"Um, I forgot to pick them up." Sirius said, wincing slightly.

"WHAT!" April shouted, "School and playgroup finished three hours ago!"

"Yeah I know. I got a bit...um...distracted." Sirius said.

"You fell asleep?" April asked. "You stay here. I'll get the children." She said storming from the room.

"April." Sirius said desperately but she'd left the house.

April arrived at her daughter's school a few minutes later. She had used magic to change into slightly formal looking muggle clothes. She pushed the door open to the reception and the main office. She went to the reception and rang the bell. The receptionist for the small primary school came to the desk.

"Hi, I'm April Black-"

"Ah, Mrs. Black, your children are in the after school club." The receptionist said kindly. "We've been trying to phone your house all afternoon but no one answered"

"That's because my stupid husband fell asleep, I just got back from work, where's the after school club held?" April asked.

"In the main hall, I'll show you to it." The receptionist said kindly with a fake smile.

"Thank you." April said. She followed the receptionist to a fairly large hall.

"I'm also afraid that your daughter has been getting into a little bit of trouble as well." The Receptionist said.

"With her work?" April asked.

"I'm afraid not. She has a letter to give you. Basically you have a meeting with the headmistress tomorrow about it." The Receptionist. April felt like that couldn't be good at all.

"Oh, ok" April said. She went into the hall.

"Mummy!" Orion said running over. She picked him up as he ran to her. Rhia followed him, looking a bit more annoyed.

"Why are you late?" Rhia asked with an angry expression.

"Later Rhia." April said. "Come on, lets go to Lily's to pick up Kaylee and Jessie." The receptionist gave her look of surprise but didn't say anything. "Thank you for letting them stay here."

"It's what the after school club is for." The receptionist said. Orion wriggled out of April's arms and ran to the door.

"Let go. Star wars!" He said eagerly. Rhia rolled her eyes and followed him out the door. April went as well. As they left the school and made their way to Lily's April looked at Rhia.

"Rhia, do you have a letter for me from your teacher?" She asked. Rhia grinned.

"Oh yeah!" Rhia said. She fished through her bag and got out a small white envelope. She handed it to April who opened it.

**Dear Mr and Mrs Black**

**I am afraid to inform you of an incident that occurred earlier today in the music department of our school. As you may know, your daughter Rhiannon is a very talented and bright young girl with a lot of potential though I must question her self control and discipline as during her music lesson today, Rhiannon and a fellow student got a little carried away. As a result a new piano, five glockenspiels, a white board, six maracas and a guitar must be purchased after the damage caused.**

**You will be required to meet with myself in order to discuss Rhiannon's behaviour. We do not blame you, as parents for her behaviour but we do wish you to try and instil a little more discipline. The school will not ask you to buy these instruments but the consequences of Rhiannon's actions must be discussed.**

**Yours faithfully**

**Geraldine Hardy**

April took a sharp intake of breath. They were approaching Lily's door. Rhia ran up to it and started banging on it. April folded up the letter, trying to stop herself from screaming. Work had been stressful, it was a bit of a shock, going back after a year of not working. Most Aurors had been out as well and the place was filled with aurors that April didn't really recognise, a large shock to the system. Lily's front door opened and James appeared in the doorway.

"Hey Rhia." James said with a grin. Rhia grinned and gave James' leg a hug.

"Rhia!" April snapped, "Stay outside." Rhia looked at April slightly surprised. "James, can I have my other children so that I can go." April said impatiently.

"Um, ok. Let me get them for-" before James could finish his sentence Kaylee crawled under his legs and outside. Rhia grinned and picked her up. Lily came to the door with Jessie in her arms. When she saw April she looked at her seriously.

"You got a letter about Rhia?" Lily asked.

"How did you-" April started to ask.

"Emma is the person she destroyed the room with. Apparently, according to Emma, they were just playing with a tambourine when everything just sort of exploded" Lily said.

"Well, thanks for looking after my children. I have to go home and have a word with my husband now." April said. Lily and James both frowned.

"That doesn't sound good." James said. "What's Sirius done?"

"None of your business, could I just have Jessie so I can go?" April asked.

"Um, yeah." Lily handed Jessie to April. April took her daughter then turned. Around.

"Rhia, Orion!" April said. Rhia followed, carefully holding Kaylee, who was playing with Rhia's hair. Orion was singing the Star Wars theme tune and running down the road like he was one of those fighter planes from it. As soon as April arrived back Sirius appeared in the hallway. He opened his mouth to say something when April shot him a harsh look.

"Don't even talk to me Sirius." She said.

"But-"

"What did I say?" April said. She looked into his eyes and searched his mind. She could see the events of the day and she wasn't particularly happy with it. She bent over and took Kaylee from Rhia and went up the stairs.

"Star Wars!" Orion said loudly.

"No! Cinderella!" Rhia said racing Orion to the TV. Sirius scowled and went up the stairs. He went to the bedroom door and gently opened it.

"April." He said quietly.

"Go away Sirius." April muttered. She was changing Jessie's clothes while Kaylee was rolling around amongst the duvet and getting tangled up in it.

"No, I'm really sorry I forgot about the kids." Sirius said. "And I want to do something to make up for it." April stopped what she was doing and turned to Sirius.

"What can you do? I ask you to look after them for one day. One day Sirius! You can't even do that. I was willing to let you try and be the father you've been trying to get me to let you be and you messed it up." April said, she sounded and looked very hurt and annoyed.

"I'm really sorry April but I-"

"Do you know what Rhia did at school today?" April said, interrupting Sirius.

"Um, no, should I?" Sirius asked uncertainly

"She and Emma destroyed what was it?" April got out the letter and read from it. "A piano, five glockenspiels, a white board, six maracas and a guitar. And do you want to know the reason why?" Sirius shrugged. "Lack of discipline. I'm trying to be a mother Sirius, I really don't want to be one but I'm trying but everything I do you just seem to destroy. I try and discipline the children, obviously not by harsh methods but it's difficult when you go and buy them sweets every time they misbehave." April said. Sirius looked at April worriedly.

"Ok, I'll stop that-"

"And it isn't just that. I get you want to be like, a house wizard but it's just not very practical. I know that you do have enough money to support us but it's going quickly Sirius. That damned motorbike. All the things you're buying the kids, the amount of money we have to change from wizarding to muggle just so that we can pay the taxes, electricity, water, gas. Merlin, Sirius, at the rate we're going, my Auror salary won't be enough!"

"But didn't you get a promotion?" Sirius asked. "And it's not my fault I'm not working. Someone has to look after the children and you're working all the time. I hate you doing that job!"

"Hello, all those days when the children were at my parent's house you could have had a job!" April's voice was getting louder

* * *

**A/N:-And thus their marriage breaks down. This was a wickedly fun chapter to write. It was sooooooo great and fun and joyous and the next chapter was just as fun....basically April digs a bit of a hole for herself. I've realised this is the best way of getting names and I'm trying to work in some of your names. None of you will be actual Potters, Blacks or Lupins, simply because there are beginning to be too many for me to keep track of, though i might make Lily pregnant again in HArry's 6th year...I still have to decide upon that. You'll probs be friends of the Potters, Blacks and Lupins. And i might give April's sister Becky another adopted child. But every possible storyline i've just mentioned are all still on the sidelines. Anyway, i hope you liked this chapter...more arguments to come :)**

**Also....LILY POTTER!!! WOO!! gives a hug another fellow person. I seem to be getting a lot of followers from here. I haven't posted this story there cause i feel that i have less freedom with my stories there.**


	16. The Argument

**The Argument**

"It's not my fault! What is there that I can do? There's nothing interesting to do!" Sirius said.

"Interesting, you want something interesting? Why don't you try starting at the bottom and work your way to the top, like I had to do!" April shouted at him.

"I'm sorry that I don't have the patience you have!" Sirius shouted back, "But I can't work like you. I can't stay cooped up in an office all day. I need to be out there."

"Sirius, can't you just try! You see everything that's right in front of you and take it at face value. Try to open your eyes and see everything else that's around. You only get things by working hard." April said, she sounded exasperated. "How long have you been a father and a husband Sirius? Just over five years isn't it? Surely you have learnt to be patient in that time!" Sirius stood there looking at April. "God! You're hopeless, you don't look beyond what's in front of you. It's pointless. I knew I shouldn't have married you!"

"What? Now that's taking it a bit too far. You didn't have to marry me it was your choice." Sirius said taking a step closer to April

"I felt pressurised into it though. And you know it. You knew I wasn't ready to get married or be a mother."

"Oh and you think I was ready to be a father?" Sirius asked. "You think I wanted this? I wanted to keep our relationship casual, I didn't want to marry either."

"Then why did you propose?" April asked him dangerously.

"Because it seemed like the right thing to do at the time!" Sirius said. "I panicked ok. I've been grown up to believe that a child can't grow up with one parent, you know the extreme pure blood believers think that and it's what I believed. I didn't want Rhia to grow up with out a father."

"You stick to those beliefs?" April asked in disbelief. "If you're believing that then what else are you believing in? Muggle borns should die? Muggle lovers shouldn't be allowed to live-"

"April, That's not what I mean and you know that! You're getting angry for no reason." Sirius said heatedly.

"Oh, I have plenty of reasons." April said.

"Oh, tell me then? Or shall I guess." Sirius asked sarcastically. April glared at him. Kaylee and Jessie were sitting on the bed staring wide eyed and the door had opened slightly and Rhia and Orion were peeking into the room.

"Oh shut up Sirius. You couldn't guess them. You're too thick headed. You're just like how you were at school. You don't care about anything, the only thing that you seemed to have stopped is your womanising antics!" April snapped.

"Oh then would this be a bad time to tell you I cheated on you at James' bachelor Party?" Sirius said without thinking. April's mouth dropped open in shock.

"What!" She screamed.

"You were going to dump me anyway, I knew it. I'd spoken to James. You wanted to get rid of me. It was obvious so I thought fuck it!" Sirius said. Before Sirius knew what had happened April brought her hand back and slapped Sirius with such force that his head snapped backwards painfully. There was a loud smack and Sirius stumbled backwards.

"Get out of my house!" April said.

"It's my house too" Sirius said.

"I paid for it. Like I pay for everything. Get out of my house Sirius! I never want to see you again!" April screamed at him. Sirius was about to snap back when April whipped out her wand.

"Fine." Sirius said. He went about the room and got a few things and apparated out of the house. April breathed heavily then turned to the door where she saw Rhia and Orion looking wide eyed.

"Go to bed now!" April shouted at them. The two young children disappeared. She turned to Kaylee and Jessie and carried on what she'd been doing before the argument but in a worse mood.

* * *

Sirius looked around. He knew where he was, he didn't want to be here but he didn't want to go to one of his friend's houses where all they'd give him is sympathy. A few seconds after he'd turned his face to look at a portrait the room was filled with screams.

"YOU BLOOD TRAITOR! GET OUT OF MY HOUSE! YOU DON'T DESERVE TO-"

"Silencio!" Sirius said, pointing his wand at the portrait. The Portrait went silent. "Good day to you as well mother." Sirius said bitterly. How Sirius hated being here. It raised too many bad memories. He closed his eyes and shivered. He heard a door open and held out his wand as he turned to the kitchen door. A house elf stood in the doorway looking at him with an angry and bitter expression.

"Oh, it's just you kreacher." Sirius said.

"What is blood traitor doing in mother's sacred home?" The house elf said bitterly.

"Just get me some fire whiskey. I'll be in my old bedroom. And quickly Kreacher or I'll free you." Sirius said. The house elf looked at him in alarm and ran off. Sirius went slowly up the stairs. His head pounding and his heart…

Well he didn't know what was going on with his heart. His emotions were a mixture of different things. As his anger subsided a huge, crushing feeling of dread seemed to weigh him down. Sirius closed his eyes for a moment. He had been a complete idiot. He went to the doorway and pushed open his old bedroom door. If anything it hadn't changed though the old Gryffindor flags that Sirius used to have up had been torn down. Sirius went to the large bed and flopped into it. It felt slightly hard and very very slightly lumpy. Not like his bed back at Godric's Hollow. Sirius closed his eyes tightly. He could hear April screaming at him in his head, his cheek still stung from that slap she gave him.

The door opened and Kreacher came in with a small glass and a bottle of Fire whiskey. He looked like he was ready to say something to Sirius when he seemed to think better and put the drink down next to the bed and stalked off. Sirius turned to the bottle and poured out a glass of fire whiskey. Once that was done he downed the glass and poured out another.

* * *

Lily knocked at April and Sirius' door the next day. Her and April had made an agreement under Sirius' orders that Lily would take their children to school or playgroups while Sirius looked after the twins and picked up his own children in the afternoon. She looked at the door as she waited. Harry was standing on his toes and trying to peer into the house. Emma was holding Lily's hand and talking to Lily thought Lily wasn't actually listening. Why wasn't anyone opening the door. Lily knocked again.

"Hello?" Lily said loudly. Emma opened the post box to look into the house and let out a small scream. The door opened and Orion was rolling on the floor laughing.

"Hi Lily." April said rather dishearteningly. Lily frowned.

"Where's Sirius?" Lily asked worriedly.

"Don't talk to me about him." April said. "Tell James I'm not going to work today. I'm going to stay at home." Lily scowled. She wanted to stay with April to see what happened but they were already late with the children. "Plus I have that meeting with Rhia's headmistress." April said.

"Ah yeah, well stay here April, we'll talk ok." Lily said. April just closed the door as soon as Orion and Rhia had stepped out into the garden. Lily jumped slightly. This was not good. Nope, not good at all.

"Um, come on." Lily said uncertainly. It took about half an hour to forty minutes to get back to April's house. This time Lily didn't knock on the door. She apparated into the house and went to look for April.

"April." Lily said. She found April standing by the window in her bedroom. She was standing staring out while Kaylee cried loudly. Lily scowled and picked up Kaylee.

"Ok, what's wrong?" Lily asked Kaylee gently, Kaylee calmed down slightly. Lily could feel that Kaylee's nappy was slightly damp, even through the nappy. She scowled and looked around for another, new nappy.

"God, April. Why didn't you change Kaylee's nappy?" Lily said.

"Who cares?" April muttered. Lily looked up at this.

"Who cares? You should care." Lily said, "What happened?" She asked as she changed Kaylee.

"Nothing." April said with a sigh.

"Obviously something happened. You're usually quite good with children." Lily said.

"Yeah well. I just don't want to be a mother anymore ok." April said. She moved away from the window and looked at Lily. Lily looked at her slightly alarmed.

"What?" Lily asked. "April what happened? Where's Sirius?" April grew angry at the mention of him. The mirror by the dressing table seemed to shatter and April took a few deep breaths.

"Nothing happened." April said.

"April, you can tell me. I am your best friend, what happened between you and Sirius?" Lily asked.

"It's none of your business Lily. It's not like you could help me anyway." April said.

"Why not?" Lily asked.

"Why not?" April repeated, "Because you have the perfect life! You and James get along too well to be true, you two love each other, your children aren't as much of a hand full as mine are and you two both have really good jobs, that's why." April said.

"I don't understand, how does that mean I can't help?" Lily asked. She held Kaylee in her arms. April wiped away an angry tear.

"Because…" April looked away as a tear fell down her face. "Because you wouldn't understand. If anything Jenny would understand but because you have the perfect life Lily, you just…" April closed her eyes. "Sorry. I'm getting worked up. I don't mean to be horrible."

"Don't worry, I'm not taking it offensively." Lily said calmly. April looked at Lily. Looking right into her eyes. Lily knew what she was doing but what was April looking for? April suddenly broke down crying and fell to her knees. Lily jumped in surprise. Ok, April was crying, since when did April cry? Lily put Kaylee into the cot with Jessie before going to April. She held April tightly and let April cry.

"I was so horrible to him." April said.

"To Sirius?" Lily asked. April nodded. "What happened?"

"We had a fight." April sobbed. "I can't even remember what it was about. No I do, it's because he's not doing anything and I'm sick and tired of having to be responsible." Lily frowned and looked at April. She had always known that April never wanted to be a mum until she was at least twenty eight, unlike Lily, April was meant to be as immature as Sirius at this current age.

"April." Lily said, she sat back on her legs and held April's hands. "Where's Sirius now? You can't keep fighting with him." April shrugged, she wouldn't meet Lily's eyes.

"I told him to get out and that I never wanted to see him again." April said. "I don't think I meant to say that but I did" April said. "He wasn't helping at all around the house, he couldn't even look after the kids. Lily, it was weird, he didn't fight back. He should have said something but he didn't say that much." Lily sighed.

"April, if he'd had any sense he wouldn't have fought back." Lily said. "Do you know where he could have gone. You can't have an argument now, not after your marriage was going so well and you've just had some children." April shook slightly in anger.

"Oh god, children." April said. She turned to Kaylee and Jessie in the cot. Yes they were cute, they were god damned adorable but April was getting the feeling she had when she'd given birth to Rhia, and Orion. The feeling that she didn't want children. She'd wished that she was still single, carefree and a successful Auror, all her plans until Sirius had screwed them up so badly, but part of it was April's fault she admitted it.

"April, you don't mean that." Lily said sternly.

"Mean what?" April asked, "I hate children but I love them, it's a vicious cycle." April said.

"April, you can't mean that you hate children, true they can get a bit of a handful." Lily said, "Don't you have any idea where Sirius could be. I know you love Sirius, even if you did tell him you never wanted to see him again." Lily said.

"I never said I didn't love him." April said. "It's been my weakness since I fell for him. I can't stop loving him and I know he'll come back and I'll forgive him. I feel so terrible." April said. Lily sighed.

"We'll sort this out I promise but first, we have to go and see Emma and Rhia's headmistress, so I'll ask Jenny if she doesn't mind babysitting for a while and while I'm gone I want you to make yourself look pretty ok." Lily said, holding April's face in her hands. "Forget about Sirius for an hour, then talk about him all you want." April nodded. Lily got up and picked up the twins.

"Lily." April said as she got up. Lily turned to look at April. "I think this will be something that Sirius and I have to do on our own. I said some stuff I've never said to him before. I don't even know where some of it came from but…this time it's different." Lily nodded. And picked up a small bag with some of the twins' stuff in.

"I'll be back soon ok. Don't do anything stupid." Lily warned.

"Why do you always say that when I'm upset?"

"Because I know you." Lily replied. Lily wondered if she should risk a group apparition so that she didn't have to fumble around with Floo powder and Portkeys. Lily risked it and closed her eyes. She held her wand in one hand and soon she was at Jenny and Remus' house. She heard someone coming out of a room and turned to see Remus dragging his feet behind him as he came out of his bedroom.

"Hi Remus." Lily said brightly.

"Hmrph" was all she got as a reply.

"I'm doing good thanks, where's Jenny?" Remus stopped for a moment to think.

"Dropping Bo off." Remus said. Lily nodded.

"O, well do you mind looking after Kaylee and Jessie for an hour while April and I go and talk to Emma and Rhia's head." Lily said. Remus frowned.

"Their heads? Couldn't you have spoken to them earlier? They do have mouths." It took Lily a moment to realised what Remus was talking about.

"Oh no I meant their head mistress" Lily said. Remus nodded and smirked.

"What happened?" He asked.

"They destroyed some instruments" Lily said with a sigh.

"And why are you bringing the twins here and not April? Is she ok?" Remus asked. He took Jessie, who cuddled against Remus. Lily had noticed that Jessie had a fondness for Remus already.

"April's not in very good condition." Lily said with a frown. Kaylee started bouncing in Lily's arms and start, what sounded like, trying to sing in baby language. Remus scowled.

"What happened to April?" He asked, sounding worried. Lily bit her lip gently.

"Could you do me a favour and try and find Sirius later?" Lily asked

"Oh no, they didn't have a argument again?" Remus asked. Lily nodded.

"Only thing is April doesn't want to see Sirius and told him that." Lily said.

"Oh Merlin. Ok, well as soon as Jenny gets back I'll go and look for him. Here give me Kay and you go and sort out April."

"Oh, and you may want to tell Jenny to go and talk to April later. April won't talk to me." Lily said with a frown. Remus looked at her confused as she put the baby bag down. "I wouldn't understand apparently." Lily muttered. "Well I have to go. Thanks for doing this Remus."

"No problem. I love looking after my favourite niece-s" He added the S as he looked at Kaylee. There was no doubt about it, Remus and Jessie just seemed to click as uncle and niece. In fact, Remus was the only person Jessie would make a noise to. Jessie grinned and did actually started babbling away to Remus. Lily apparated back to April's house and found her sitting on the bed, dressed in some smartish muggle clothes.

"Ready?" Lily asked. April shrugged.

* * *

Ms. Meredith Hardy was a fairly short woman with short but very thick brown hair that seemed to stick out. She had thick glasses that covered her fairly small dark green eyes. Her face was slightly chubby and she had slightly stubby fingers. Lily could tell that once, she would have been very beautiful, probably in the days of the flappers when everyone had bob cuts…maybe this headmistress had never left that age. Lily herself felt like she was in Muggle school again and that she was ten years old. Only Lily's family really knew this but she had been a little bit of a trouble maker in muggle school simply because it wasn't challenging enough, so when she went to Hogwarts, she loved it!

"Now we aren't blaming you or your children. We only have the testimonies of other four and five years olds concerning what happened." Meredith Hardy told them.

"What exactly did happen?" Lily asked. April had been strangely quiet the entire time, saying a grand total of five words.

"Well, the music teacher stepped out of the classroom to go and get some paper for the children to work on then there was a crash. He ran back and saw several instruments had been destroyed. When he asked whose fault it was everyone pointed at your children and they sat there grinning. Now-"

"How do you know it was our children though?" Lily challenged, "They can't have done anything to cause such a…a scene."

"Well, we still aren't entirely sure of it ourselves. One of the young children, a friend of Emma and Rhiannon, a young girl named Kara Banks said it was like Magic." April sat up and looked at Lily. Lily didn't move. "The music teacher, Mr. Townsend, has informed me though that the most probable cause for this was that your children do not have enough…creative release, as he put it. Now, there is a simple solution for this." April looked completely lost while Lily forced a slight smile on her face.

"Creative Release? How would he know if they haven't got enough creative release?" Lily asked.

"Simple. Apparently they get carried away on the instruments every time they go into music." Meredith Hardy told them. Lily nodded slowly. "But he has suggest that maybe, you could give your daughters some music lessons. The school will provide them, as long as you pay and fee every term of fifty pounds."

"Fifty pounds?" April asked slightly shocked. "Is that good?"

"Yes it is very good in fact." Meredith Hardy said. "Currently we only have Piano and guitar lessons and we are willing to give each child a place in these lessons."

"Um. Ok." Lily said. She looked to April. "What do you think?"

"I don't care really. I probably won't be able to afford it."

"Of course you will." Lily said. She turned back to the teacher. "We'd be very grateful if you could put our children into the lessons."

"Could Rhia have the Piano lessons?" April asked.

"Of course she may." Meredith Hardy said, writing it down on a pad of paper. "Now there is also the simple matter of discipline-"

"That's been sorted out." April said quickly. "The cause of Rhia's misbehaviour has been gotten rid of, she should behave better from now on." Lily looked at April with a warning look. Meredith Hardy gave her a curious look then leaned forwards onto her desk.

"I know is a very personal question to ask, but is there any trouble going on at home. You are both very young mothers, and I have heard that your husbands are just as young. Young couples, in my experience, tend to be more argumentative then other couples and are more likely to split up." Meredith Hardy said. She was reminding Lily of a Psychiatrist.

"Um, no my marriage is perfectly fine." Lily said. Meredith Hardy turned to April. April was looking at the floor.

"There is some trouble but I'm not going to disclose that kind of information to someone I have barely ever met." April said. Meredith Hardy nodded like her suspicions had been confirmed.

"Very well. We will monitor their behaviour for another few weeks. If nothing has changed I'm afraid we will have to put them into separate classes." Meredith Hardy said.

"No you can't do that." Lily said.

"And why not Mrs. Potter" Lily felt the warm rush she always got when someone called her Mrs. Potter but she fought down the urge to smile.

"It's for Rhia's best interests. About a year and a half ago, Rhia was kidnapped. She doesn't really trust anyone but Emma. You can't split them up." Lily said. Meredith Hardy straightened as she processed this new piece of information.

"Very well. I'll take that into consideration. Oh, Mrs. Potter. I would like to congratulate you on your son Harry. He is top of his class at the moment in Maths, literacy and basic science." Lily smiled slightly. "Have a nice day." Meredith Hardy said with a smile. April and Lily rose. As soon as they were outside the school gates April started in a rant about the headmistress.

"What right has she got telling me how to raise my children? She doesn't know half the stuff that we've been through, it's a miracle Rhia's even alive, that stupid bitch-" Lily began to zone out. April was right, Meredith Hardy didn't know half of what any of them had been through, but why should she know? She was a muggle, they were witches. Emma and Rhia would be going to Hogwarts, Dumbledore had even told them so. That reminded Lily, she had to organise that dinner with Dumbledore. Lily took April's hand as her ranting went towards Sirius.

"April, calm down ok. Sirius isn't worth the effort over." Lily said.

"It's his fault that Rhia's like this. If he'd just tried to be a decent father and not fussed over her so much and rewarded her. It's like he wants her to be a troublemaker."

"What do you expect, Sirius was a Marauder, it's in their nature to be troublemakers." Lily said.

"But you've pretty much squashed it out of James" April said, "Why can't Sirius do the same. James is mature and he doesn't mess around, he just focuses on getting money to help keep your family well off and he tries to be a good father where as Sirius, he won't even get a job-"

"You can't change a man unless they want to change" Lily said, "James changed for me, I didn't change him."

"Still." April said, "It's unfair. You get such a perfect life while me and Jenny were stuck with the not so perfect ones."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lily asked as she stopped to face April.

"Oh come on. You have the perfect life Lily, like I said earlier. You have a good well paid job as a healer. You too beautiful to be true. Your husband is perfect, he works hard, is responsible and still knows how to have fun and be a good dad. Your son is top of his class in like everything and Emma is bright for a four year old!" April said.

"And what's that got to do with anything? It's far from perfect." Lily said.

"Oh, lets compare it to me and Jenny shall we? Lets start with Jenny. Jenny is married to a werewolf. She suffered almost complete rejection at school after they found out, she was only still popular because she hung around with us. She got pregnant and ran away to China, where her family rejected her, she has a son who's also a werewolf and refuses to drink Wolfsbane potion. You think that's perfect, every month for her she goes through two days and one night of non-stop worry, wondering if Moony and Bo are behaving themselves, or hoping that they don't bite anyone?" April asked.

"Have you and Jenny been talking about this?" Lily asked, with her arms crossed.

"A little." April answered truthfully. "And you know my life. Four unwanted children, a good for nothing husband and fights like every month. I can still even hear Voldemort in my head from time to time."

"You think my life is easy April? You know as much as anyone it's far from easy. Mother of the boy-who-lived, until recently attacks every month. I was nearly killed by Voldemort four times!" Lily said, "But if that's the way you want it April then fine. You go and believe I have the perfect life. God, April, I'm just trying to help you. You and Sirius have to stop arguing for the children's sake!"

"Well I don't need your help Lily because you can't help. You're just too selfless and just so…kind that sometimes it's slightly annoying. You're always so happy and pleased with yourself. Lily, please, do me a favour and just try not to interfere this time. Don't try and find Sirius because I don't want to see him." April said before turning down the road to her house.

* * *

**A/N:- (singing) April's diggin a hole, a hole, a hole. ANyway, this is soo fun to write. I don't care if you people don't like Sirius and April arguing. It's fun for me to write and I've discussed it with a few of my readers and they like it. It...what was it....(finds emails)...suits their characters. Well, that's what they said not me. You see, April and Sirius are still children, effectively, but they've got their own children, and as for Sirius, it was Azkaban that really made him all responsible and all that, so, I'm afraid compared to the horrors of Azkaban, children have no chance. Anyway, hope you like this chapter. Some of you probably didn't but hey, i get to introduce you to Emma and Rhia's latest hobbies...their...'creative energies' will be released...and so will Orion's eventually. Boy April and Sirius are gona love them :D**


	17. Gaining Comfort

**Gaining Comfort**

Lily took a deep breath and looked around. She apparated out of Godric's hollow and found herself outside the Auror Headquarters in the Ministry of magic. She walked into the headquarters. A few aurors looked at her in rather suggestive ways but Lily was used to it. She couldn't believe April had just said that to her. They were supposed to be best friends and April was supposed to tell Lily whenever something annoyed her. And on top of that, Jenny and April talked about her, Lily, behind her own back! Her life was not perfect! She was about to knock on a door that had the italic surnames of those who occupied it when she heard someone call her name from behind.

"Lily, what are you doing here?" James asked with a look of pleasant surprise. Lily put her arms around James and hugged him tightly. James held her and glanced around.

"Get on with your work Martin." He said sternly. There was a sudden bustle and James looked at Lily. "Are you ok?" He asked gently. Lily nodded.

"Yeah, well no. I just had a bit of a talk with April." Lily said. "And she said some stuff that hurt me." James wiped away a tear that was threatening to fall down her face.

"Here, come with me. We can have more privacy in the office." James said. He opened the door that Lily had been about to knock on and they went in. There was one other auror in there. One of the three people that James shared an office with. He had fairly long black hair and tanned skin. He looked slightly Mediterranean but Lily wasn't totally sure. James led Lily to his desk and he sat on the desk top while Lily sat in his seat.

"What happened?" James asked.

"I don't know." Lily said. "We were coming home from Emma's school and then she just started on me, saying all this stuff about my life and how it's so perfect and all that. Then she started comparing us to Jenny and Remus and her and Sirius. She's just angry because she fell out with Sirius again. She's taking it out on me and I'm fed up with it. She always takes it out on me. Am I such an easy target?" Lily asked James. She looked at him for an answer.

"So that's why April didn't come in today." The other man muttered to himself. Lily and James glanced at him for a moment before returning their gaze to each other.

"No, you're not an easy target but you do have a tendency of letting April walk over you. Especially since the whole thing with Voldemort. I'm sure she'll apologize soon. But what's this about her and Sirius?" James asked with a frown.

"Oh yeah, she threw Sirius out again and told him she never wanted to see him again. No one can find him so Remus is going to look around." Lily muttered with a wave of her hand. James stood up and sighed.

"A week before Orion's birthday as well. They never time their arguments very well do they?" James asked. Lily sank into his chair and looked around miserably. James looked at her and sighed. "Look, Lily there's nothing you can do about any of this. April is just annoyed that's all. Just forget about it" James said.

"She's my best friend James, and the closest thing I have to a sister." Lily said.

"And even sisters fight occasionally, no matter how close they are. You of all people should know that" James said with a smile. Lily let out a weak smile.

"I wonder how Petunia is doing." Lily said nostalgically.

"I don't know but to cheer you up. I managed to get hold of some tickets to go and see...what was it?" James opened up a few of his drawers and let out a triumphant shout. He turned around holding some tickets. "I got tickets to see a musical called The Cabaret. It's at a muggle theatre so I thought you might enjoy it." James said with a smile. Lily couldn't help smiling.

"You want to go to a muggle theatre?" Lily asked.

"If it'll make you happy...and it sounded interesting. More interesting then that...Sound of music rubbish you like." James said as a joke. Lily swatted his arm. She stood up.

"Ok, when do we go?"

"Two weeks time. I tried to get as good as seats as possible." James said. Lily put her arms around James' neck.

"I knew it was a good idea to talk to you about this." Lily said. "Do you want to get some lunch?" James grinned.

"Hang on." James turned to the other man. "Have we got anything scheduled for later today."

"No, just a bit of paper work, since all the Death Eaters have been rounded up it's been going slowly. So go out to lunch, I don't want to see this love show all afternoon." He said with a slight smirk and not looking up.

"Who's he?" Lily whispered to James.

"Porter, this is my wife Lily. Lily, this is Porter."

"Michel Porter." He said looking up with a smile "Nice to-" He stopped slightly. "James you never said your wife was so fit!" He was looking at Lily with a slightly hungry and awed look like he wanted her himself. Lily smiled and turned to James.

"I like him." She said light-heartedly.

"She's mine Porter." James said. "I'm going to lunch. Come on Lily." James said with a grin. Lily smiled and let James stand up.

* * *

Remus apparated to Grimmauld Place. This was a last resort. He'd looked everywhere he could think of, even Sirius' old apartment. He'd given it's new tenants one hell of a shock when he'd arrived. Remus knew that Sirius hated this place more then any place in the world but it was worth a shot to see if he was here.

"Sirius!" Remus shouted through the house

"I'm not here" Sirius replied from upstairs. His speech seemed very slightly slurred. Remus went up the stairs and stopped as he saw a house elf walking down the stairs.

"Stupid blood traitor coming home after all these years expecting to be treated like a god. No blood traitors will I serve-" He muttered as he carried on down the stairs. Blood traitor. That's what the Black family had called Sirius. Remus carried on up the stairs and opened each door until he came to a room that had the faint smell of alcohol. Remus went in to find Sirius passed out on the bed. He held a half empty bottle of fire Whiskey in his hand and there was an abandoned glass on the floor. Remus sighed and went to the think black curtains. He opened them wide and coughed as thick clouds of dust flew out of them. He waved the clouds away and opened the window. Fresh air came in as well as sunlight. Sirius shifted and dropped the bottle of fire whiskey. Remus went over to pick it up and set it on the table with the abandoned glass.

"Sirius, get up." Remus said.

"No." He muttered into the pillow.

"Seriously, get up." Remus said. He pulled on the duvet and lifted it up, causing Sirius to roll off the bed. Sirius hit the floor with a thud and got to his feet.

"What is your problem Remus!" Sirius asked.

"You shouldn't be sulking away, if you want April back then you've got to work for it." Remus said.

"Work is too hard." Sirius replied as he flopped back on the bed.

"That's exactly why April's going to leave you." Remus said. Sirius' head shot up.

"What? Leave me?" Sirius asked. Remus took a deep breath.

"Jenny was round there earlier." Remus said, he sat on the bed next to Sirius. "April's through. She wants out." Sirius looked at Remus. He didn't want to believe it. It wasn't true, she didn't want out did she? Sirius reached for the Fire Whiskey but Remus moved it out of the way.

"Don't bury everything in a bottle. If you become addicted it'll be harder to win April back" Remus said.

"Who said I want to win her back, give me that bottle Remus!" Sirius said lunging for him. Remus jumped out of the way and Sirius crashed in a heap on the floor.

"Sirius, if you didn't want to win her bag, you wouldn't be going for the drink." Remus said. Sirius pushed himself into a sitting position.

"Hang on, why isn't April telling all this to Lily instead of Jenny?"

"They had a slight argument." Remus said. Sirius raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Really?" Sirius asked, "Over what?"

"I don't know, it's just what Jenny told me." Remus said. "Come on mate. Lets get you cleaned up." Remus put the bottle down and pulled Sirius to his feet. Sirius swayed slightly and Remus put an arm around him to support him.

"I don't want to do anything, let me drown in my misery for a while." Sirius said. "April wants to break up with me? I can't believe it. She can't do that. I love her more then life." He complained. Remus rolled his eyes and dragged Sirius to the bathroom. He put down the toilet lids and forced Sirius to sit on them.

"I didn't mean to hurt her like that. It's all my fault. Oh Merlin, she's gonna take the children and I'll never be able to see them again. Remus, please help me. I don't know what to do!" Sirius said miserably.

"Ok, I'll help you but first you need to clean yourself up then you need to get a job. April's the one bringing in all your money and you chare vaults." Remus said. "James and I will help you get her back, don't worry."

"But what if April still doesn't want me back?" Sirius asked in despair. Remus frowned.

"Don't think like that." Remus told Sirius. "Lily told me that April's just going through a depression. Apparently Post Natal depression can hit like, six months after someone's had a baby"

"That's impossibly." Sirius muttered.

"No it's not. April's as much human as you and me and it's possible for her to get depressed as well." Remus said testily.

"April's not human though." Sirius said with a gleam in his eyes.

"Of course she's human, she's not a devil."

"No, she's a goddess." Sirius said. "Everything about her-"

"Shut up Sirius, you're still slightly drunk I can tell. Just have a shower." Remus said impatiently.

"I want more fire whiskey, where's that stupid bottle?" Sirius asked, looking around. Remus went to Sirius and hit him round the face. It was enough to make Sirius pay attention to Remus.

"No more drink ok!" Remus said, "It's only going to hamper your attempts to get April."

"But she wants to split up. That woman drives me crazy, I'm through as well. If she's through with me, I'm through with her. I can always get someone else." Sirius said. He got up and left the room. Remus scowled. He decided to let Sirius go in hunt of a drink as he apparated to Lily and James' house. Jenny was sitting in the living room with Lily.

"So?" Jenny asked anxiously.

"He says he's also through." Remus said with a very deep frown. Lily let out a tired moan and Jenny let out a disappointed sigh.

"Dammit." Jenny said.

"They're just being stubborn" Lily said. "Where's James!" She said sounding frustrated. Emma ran in and hid behind Remus' legs.

"Uncle Remus help me" Remus looked at the door as Bo and Harry came running in.

"Emma!" Bo said. He ran for her on one side while Harry ran on the other side. Emma let out a scream and Remus picked her up.

"Uncle Remus!" Harry said looking annoyed.

"Dad!" Bo said. Remus chuckled.

"You're not allowed to do anything." Remus said. Harry looked to Lily to try and tell Remus to put Emma down. Lily gave him a gentle smile.

"Please." Bo begged.

"No, don't let go." Emma said hugging Remus' neck tightly.

"Don't worry Emma." Remus said.

"Mum!" Harry complained.

"Do as Remus said." Lily said. "What are we going to do about April and Sirius?" She said to Jenny and Remus

"I don't know" Remus said, "Sirius seemed really dejected and he wants to spend all his time drinking"

"And April's trying not to take out her anger on the children. I'm gonna offer to take the twins later. I'm scared for their safety" Jenny said.

"I'd take the other two but I somehow doubt April would let me." Lily said in slight despair. Jenny gave her a sympathetic look.

"I'm sure she won't stay angry with you for that long." Jenny said.

"Do you even remember the last time April and I fought?" Lily asked. Jenny frowned.

"But we had Padfoot to help that time." Jenny said.

"But you didn't have me." Remus said. "Lily, I'm sure April didn't mean what she said." Lily looked sceptical. She went to Remus and took Emma from him and returned to the sofa. Bo and Harry grinned at each other.

"Well, if she didn't, it seemed like she did." Lily said quietly. Emma leant her head against Lily's shoulder and watched Bo and Harry carefully. Their heads were together in whispers and they kept glancing at Emma. Emma held onto Lily tightly, in case something happened.

"Well what she said wasn't that bad was it?" Jenny asked.

"Well, not really but it was the way she said it." Lily said. "I just want to help her. You know, maybe look after the kids or to help her get over Sirius, if that is in fact what she wants to do." Lily said.

"I don't think she's thinking properly. Give her a few days to cool down before we try and talk about it again." Remus said.

"Good idea" Jenny said. "Remus, we should get going, it's nearing night." Jenny said.

"So?" Remus said. "Oh yeah, full moon."

"You forgot?" Lily asked, slightly amused. Remus shrugged innocently

"Can you blame me?" He asked.

"Yes." Lily said with her tongue out. Remus laughed.

"Come on Bo, we have to go." Remus said. Bo looked at him with a frown. He looked to Emma.

"Can I come?" Emma asked. "Is Bo turning into the doggy?"

"No, you can't come." Jenny said, "He might hurt you."

"No he not!" Emma said like it was ridiculous. Bo grinned at Emma, who smiled at him.

"Sorry Emma." Lily said, "You have to stay at home tonight, you have school tomorrow." Emma crossed her arms in annoyance. Lily stayed on the sofa.

"Ok, well we'll see you tomorrow then" Jenny said. Lily smiled.

"Yeah. Bye." Lily said, Remus and Jenny went to the fireplace and threw in a handful of Floo Powder. Bo disappeared in the flames. Remus went with him and Jenny apparated. Harry climbed onto the sofa next to Lily and looked at her.

"What's wrong with Aunt April?" Harry asked.

"Yes." Emma said to Lily. Emma looked at Lily while playing with a strand of Lily's hair.

"She's very upset at the moment." Lily said. "Hopefully she'll get better soon." Harry grinned.

"Does that mean uncle Sirius can stay?" Harry asked.

"No, Sirius is staying somewhere else for now." Harry frowned and Lily laughed gently.

"Are you hungry?" She asked.

"No" "Yes" Emma and Harry answered in that order. Lily rolled her eyes and gave Emma a kiss on the forehead. Emma laughed and hugged Lily. Harry grinned and hugged Lily as well.

"You and daddy must never fight." Emma said. Lily laughed.

"Don't worry we wont." Lily said. Emma looked into Lily's eyes. "We'll love each other for ever and ever and ever."

"Will you love me and Emma for ever and ever and ever?" Harry asked. Lily looked at Harry.

"What do you think?" Lily asked.

"No." Emma joked.

"That's right." Lily said laughing. Emma and Harry laughed. "No, your dad and I will love you two."

"Mummy." Emma said seriously. Lily made her face serious.

"Emma." Lily answered.

"Why do Uncle Sirius and Aunt April hate each other?" Emma asked.

"Will Rhia and Orion and Kaylee and Jess have to find new families?" Harry asked. Lily laughed.

"No, they won't have to find new families and April and Sirius don't have each other" Lily said.

"Then why do they fight?" Emma asked.

"Because they're upset" Lily answered.

"Did you ever hate Daddy?" Harry asked. Lily smiled and hugged Harry.

"Yes I did." Lily said.

"When?" Emma asked with an eager look on her face.

"When we went to school." Lily answered

"Why did you like him?" Harry asked

"Because he gave me a kiss." Lily said. Emma grinned.

"When?" Emma asked.

"When I was eighteen" Lily said. Emma's mouth opened.

"Eighteen!" Emma said in amazement

"Mummy, you're old!" Harry said. Lily laughed.

"I am not old." Lily said, "Compared to you I'm old."

"Mummy." Emma said again.

"Emma"

"Do you have a brother or sister?" Emma asked. Lily rolled her eyes.

"You're being nosy today aren't you?" Lily asked pinching Emma's nose. Emma laughed and hugged Lily tighter.

"So?" Harry asked.

"Yes I do have a sister. An evil sister like in Cinderella" Lily said. Harry leant against Lily like he was preparing for a story.

"Where did you go to school?" Harry asked. Lily smiled and began to tell her children all about Hogwarts. She was rather amused when they asked her questions like that. Lily told them everything from the dormitories, the hidden passages, the Lake outside with the giant squid and mermaids to the adventures that the Marauders had, the fun that she, April and Jenny had had. It took a while and after a while James came home and caught onto what Lily was talking about. Emma went over to James and soon the two children were asleep. James kissed the top of Emma's head.

"Any reason why you were talking about Hogwarts?" James asked. Lily shrugged, she felt quite tired herself. Harry was fast asleep in her arms. Lily brushed some of Harry's hair out of the way and looked at his scar.

"Lily, we couldn't help that, you know it." James said, noticing what his wife was doing.

"I know." Lily said. "You know, I think Harry and Emma will enjoy Hogwarts." James smiled.

"Who wouldn't?" James asked.

"As long as they're not troublemakers like you were then I don't mind what they do." Lily said.

"Hey!" James said, trying not to raise his voice to wake up Emma. "Come on, lets go upstairs and ditch the kids. I'm hungry." James said. Lily rolled her eyes. She stood up and lifted Harry. He was getting much heavier. James smiled at her. They put the children to bed. Lily waited for James on the landing. Lily suddenly got an idea. She was slightly upset that she wasn't talking to one of her friends but it didn't mean that because everyone was having trouble she had to have trouble in her relationship and James may be hungry but Lily didn't feel like eating. She disappeared into her bedroom as James came out of Emma's room.

"Lily?" James asked.

"Hang on a moment." Lily said. James looked at the door vaguely amused. "James."

"Yeah."

"Do you really want to eat?" Lily asked.

"Um, yeah?" James said uncertainly.

"Ok." Lily opened the door. James' mouth fell open. She had changed into her sleeping clothes...or so James thought, with the silk dressing gown that James had bought her years ago. He hadn't seen it since Harry had been conceived. "Now do you want to eat?" Lily asked, leaning an arm against the edge of the door frame.

"Food, no, you yes." James said quickly. Lily grinned as James attacked her with kisses. Lily laughed as she closed the door.

* * *

"Mummy" Orion said carefully the next weekend.

"Orion." April said as she got ready to go to work

"Where Daddy?" Orion asked.

"Yes, where Daddy and why I can't see Emma?" Rhia asked with her arms crossed.

"Daddy's moved out and you can't see Emma because she's busy."

"No she not. Bo tell me she's bored!" Rhia said.

"Rhia!" April snapped. Rhia started in surprise.

"Sorry." Rhia said quickly. April looked at Rhia. Jenny had taken the twins to look after for a while so it was the two oldest with April.

"Come here." April said to Rhia. Rhia rant o her and April picked her up in a hug. "Mummy and Daddy are having a few problems right now." April said.

"And why I can't see Emma?" Rhia asked.

"Because Lily and I are also having problems." April said. "But do you really want to see Emma?" Rhia nodded. April looked at Orion, who was crawling around under the table.

"Ok." April said, "I'll drop you off now." April had to admit that she missed having Lily to talk to. They'd ignored each other pretty much all week. Orion crawled out from under the table and sat on the floor.

"Mummy!" Orion shouted.

"Yes." April said.

"My birthday tomorrow" Orion said with a grin

"Yes I know." April said.

"Can Daddy come? And Jess and Kaylee?" Orion asked.

"Um...we'll see." April said. Orion grinned.

"Harry's house now!" He said. He got to his feet and ran to put on his shoes. Rhia wriggled free and went to put on her own shoes. April felt a fluttering feeling in her stomach. Oh god, time to face Lily. How was April going to apologise to Lily. Soon April was walking Orion and Rhia to Lily's house. She knocked on the door. Lily opened it and gave April a cold smile.

"Hello April." She said a bit formally.

"Um, the kids wanted to come over. Do you mind babysitting them?" April asked. Lily looked at April for a moment and opened the door wider to let Rhia and Orion in. She was about to close the door when April stopped her. "Lily, I'm sorry." April said. Lily looked at her.

"It's ok" Lily said quietly.

"No, I know you don't think it's ok. You're not ok with it Lily and I'm really sorry." April said.

"Stop searching my mind without permission." Lily said. "It gets irritating."

"Sorry. I won't do it again. It's a habit I need to cut." April said. Lily nodded.

"James told me to tell you if I saw you to get your ass down to Auror headquarters, they need you." Lily said before closing the door. April sighed, well she'd said sorry. She'd just have to wait for a while before Lily forgave her completely. April looked around before apparating to work.

* * *

Remus was getting fed up. He dragged Sirius from the bed and onto the floor with a thump. Sirius didn't seem to feel it and was out cold. Remus grabbed one of his legs and pulled him through the door and down the stairs, letting Sirius' head hit each one in an attempt to wake him up. But again, nothing. Remus managed to drag Sirius past the silently screaming portrait of Mrs. Black. Sirius was left by the door as Remus turned on the taps at the sink and let the sink fill up with cold water. When it was about four fifths full Remus muttered a spell to make it so cold that ice was forming on the top. Remus returned to Sirius and pulled him up with some effort. He pulled Sirius to the sink, his feet dragging against the floor.

"Bloody hell mate." Remus cursed, "Wouldn't hurt to lose some weight." When the reached the sink Remus held Sirius' face and thrust it through the thin ice on the water and into the freezing water.

"AH!!" Came the long shout from under the water. Remus held Sirius' head there for a few more seconds before releasing it. Sirius stood up straight and glared at Remus. "What the hell was that for!" Sirius asked

"I needed to wake you up. You've been pretty much passed out all week" Remus said sharply.

"Yeah, so what the hell was that for?"

"It's Orion's birthday tomorrow, and we're having a dinner at Lily's." Remus said.

"Will April be there?" Sirius asked.

"Does it matter? Orion is your one and only son Sirius." Remus said shortly. He was getting so sick of this argument between April and Sirius.

"So what are you doing here?" Sirius asked, rubbing his head with his hand.

"Making sure you're in a fit state to go tomorrow. How do you think it would look if you turned up at your son's party, half drunk, hung over, messy and without a present?" Remus asked. Sirius grunted a reply.

"So he's having a party?" Sirius asked.

"Lily's been so kind to host it and organise it for him. April's still in no proper state, our house is too far out of the way and even though Lily and April are still cold for one another, Lily and James are Orion's godparents." Remus said.

"So we're going shopping?" Sirius asked. Remus nodded and threw Sirius his cloak.

"Yes, I'm not letting you turn up at Orion's party without one. We're not stepping foot in Godric's Hollow until you have a wrapped present under your arm." Remus said.

"Yes sir." Sirius said groggily

* * *

**A/N:-I am sitting here seething. One reviewer...Why?....Spillgirl...Why? why do you guess? now you know what's gonna happen....god, why? lol, anyway, onto the actual A/N. I need a bit of help for future storylines and stuff. I'm trying to involve you guys as much as i can with this story. So.....I've decided that i want a storyline that invovles Neville or Cho before HArry becomes 10. Now, it can be anything....also, some future and forwards planning for my next story..Beyond the End 2 (working title)...which is HArry's sixth year in this world....who do you want to fall through the veil at the DoM?? Do you still want it to be tht wud work...or Jenny...which wud also work...or Remus....that also works very well with my plan...hm....anyway, send me your ideas if you have n e. If you can't be bothered to think up storylines because you're a lazy arse like me....then sit back and read the rest of this story...if i wasn't the author, i'd do just that.**


	18. Orion's Party

**Orion's party**

Orion grinned as his friends from his new playgroup came into Lily's house. Because Lily's house was so big there was plenty of space for all the children. Emma and Rhia had their friend Kara around. Kara was the same height as the girls, had a really weird sense of humour...just as weird as Emma and Rhia. She had fairly long blond hair that had a few streaks of brown on the underside. Her eyes glittered blue. She was the typical English girl, only thing was that she lived in Wales and had a slightly welsh accent. The three girls were sitting in the living room on the sofa facing each other and playing some hand game they usually played in the school playgrounds. Lily and James had gone through every single room and put charms on the photos to stop them from moving. Anything that looked out of the ordinary was put in Lily and James' room. The two owls they owned had been told to stay out of the house for the day. The owls had nestled in a tree at the end of what could be called the back garden but really, the garden didn't actually end.

Orion and his friends were running around chasing James. Harry and Bo were sulking over the fact that they couldn't play on their broomsticks but found some consolation when James fell into a hole that Harry had forgotten to fill in from last year. That got everyone laughing.

"And you're supposed to be an Auror." Jenny mused as James climbed out of the hole trying to cling onto his pride. Lily had shaken her head and went inside to check on the girls. She went into the living room where the girls were chanting and clapping hands.

"High low chickalow, chikalow, high low chickalow, chickalow high." They sang. Lily watched Kara. There was something about that young girl that didn't seem right. She didn't seem to be like all the other Muggle children. If Lily had been able to make any guess at all, she'd say that Kara was slightly magical but it wasn't to Lily to think that kind of thing. If anything, Minerva McGonagall would know. She was responsible for getting out the letters to the students who were going to go to Hogwarts. Lily snapped to attention, that was another six years for Emma, Rhia and possibly Kara. Lily, in the mean while had to keep her mind focused on Orion's party. There was a knock at the door. Lily went to the front door and opened it. April stood in the doorway. Lily smiled. No point in holding a grudge against her today.

"Come in April." Lily said with a smile. April beamed at her and gave Lily a hug. Lily laughed.

"You're not angry with me?" April asked.

"Nope, not at all, well yes a bit" Lily said, "But it's Orion's birthday." Lily said. April grinned and kissed Lily's cheek.

"You're brilliant." April said. Lily smiled, April seemed ok. Someone cleared their throat from the door. Lily's smile fell and she bit her lip. April's smile faltered. Sirius stood in the doorway looking rather humble. He glanced at April nervously.

"Hi." He said. Remus appeared behind him.

"Hi." April said with a strained voice. Lily and April moved aside to let them in. Remus gave Lily a hopeful look.

"Well, how are you April?" Sirius asked as he took off his jacket.

"I was ok until you came." April said. She looked at Lily with a look that said she wanted to talk afterwards. "You?"

"Well I could be better but you're stopping me from doing that" Sirius said with a slight sneer. April rolled her eyes and turned to Lily.

"Come on, April I need to show you something." Lily said, leading April up the stairs. They went into Lily's bedroom and closed the door.

"What's Sirius doing here?"

"It was James' idea. He wants Orion to have both his parents at his party." Lily said. April took a sharp breath. The last person she wanted to see was Sirius, she could feel her temper rising with him just being there.

"I suppose." April said. "He's just been annoying me so much."

"Well, to tell you the truth, he's been passed out most of the week." Lily said, "We've been taking it in turns to check up on him."

"Figures, when things get tough, turn to the beloved bottle of Fire Whiskey." April said.

"April." Lily said in a stern tone.

"Sorry Lily but I'm telling the truth" April said. She sighed and sat on the bed. Lily smiled and sat next to April.

"Just tough it out for a few hours, then scream and shout all you want." Lily said lightly. April smiled at her.

"You are too nice." April said. Lily smiled.

"I just have a long patience, now, lets go and see your son shall we?"

"Only if my good for nothing husband isn't there as well" April said bitterly. Lily took April's hand.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you."

* * *

The party had been ok. April and Sirius simply stayed in different rooms. When the passed each other in the halls they ignored each other. It amazed Lily and the others how cold they were being to each other. Orion had been delighted to see Sirius, as was Rhia. Rhia stuck with Sirius for pretty much the whole evening, making Lily grateful that she'd invited Kara. James had made April go insane when he presented Orion with a toy lightsaber, that made all the noises and came with a little Jedi outfit. At that James and April had a mock brawl, mainly for the entertainment of the children. After that Orion and a few of his friends decided to play Star wars, with Orion as Luke Skywalker.

Dinner was a very painful and awkward affair. The conversation was polite and no one knew exactly what to say. The children were all eating in the living room because the kitchen table wasn't big enough. The only children in the room were Kaylee and Jessie, both of which seemed to find it fun to throw their dinners at the adults. But towards the end of the dinner, their heads were beginning to loll slightly as they fell asleep in their high chairs.

"So, what are the plans for tomorrow?" Jenny said hesitantly. "It's Sunday after all."

"I was planning on staying in, having a lie in." James said looking at Lily fondly. Lily smiled at him.

"I'm with him on that." Lily said.

"You two are so tactful." April muttered as she ate. She was sitting opposite Sirius, much to her disgust, but it was that or sit next to him. Each one had one of the twins sitting next to them.

"Oh, sorry." Lily said.

"She's just upset she's not getting any." Sirius said. April looked up at him dangerously. The others all seemed to cringe slightly.

"Excuse me?" April asked, "You think I'm upset because of that?"

"Why else would you be upset about Lily and James having some romance in their life." Sirius asked, putting his cutlery down.

"I'm not upset by that, I was just saying they were making it obvious what they were going to do tonight."

"All right, moving on." James said.

"Yes, right on" Remus agreed.

"Oh please April." Sirius said, "You're upset you don't have the perfect life."

"I am not upset because of it. I'm upset because you, Sirius Black, are an arrogant, lazy good for nothing!" April said. Jenny covered her eyes with her hand as she sighed. Lily put her head in her hands while James and Remus leant back in their chair. No point eating now.

"I stay at home to look after the children, that's more then you want to do with them" Sirius said.

"Oh I'm sorry if this family needs money!" April said. "But I don't see you trying to make some."

"Probably because you won't give me the chance to?" Sirius said patronisingly.

"Oh no." Jenny muttered. April got up to her feet and left the room.

"WHAT! TOO CHICKEN TO FACE ME!" Sirius shouted after her.

"Sirius!" James hissed at him. April re-entered the room.

"Excuse me Sirius?" April asked. Sirius got to his feet.

"Are you too chicken to even have an argument with me? It's the first time you're running away from an argument." Sirius said. April's eyes seemed to flare with anger.

"It's late and the children should be getting to bed. If you were any sort of father you'd know that!" April said.

"Well I'm not allowed in the house, and I highly doubt you'll let me take the children back to my house, so why should I care?" Sirius said sitting down and crossing his arms. April let out a scream of frustration as she left the room. All the adults were silent.

"Rhia, Orion, get ready to go." April said.

"No, stay here with Daddy!" Rhia said. She ran into the dinning room and jumped on Sirius' lap.

"Rhia!" April said following her into the room. Orion came in as well, still bedecked in his Jedi clothes. "You are coming home." Rhia looked like she was going to cry as she clung to Sirius.

"No, stay with Daddy." Rhia said. She looked at Sirius, "Daddy, can you come home?" She asked. Sirius sighed,

"Sorry darling, I can't. Your mother won't let me." Sirius said bitterly. "And I would let you come to my house but your mum won't let you."

"Go to Daddy's house" Rhia said looking at April hopefully. Jenny, Lily, Remus and James weren't saying anything. They weren't going to get involved in this family dispute. April closed her eyes.

"Fine, whatever. She has to be back by tomorrow night." April said. She picked up Jessie then picked up Kaylee. "And no later then seven." She said. Rhia beamed and sat on Sirius' lap. Sirius' arms around his young daughter.

"Can I stay wiv Daddy too?" Orion asked. April looked ready to burst. They could all tell she wanted to say no but it was Orion's birthday.

"Alright," April said with a strained voice. Orion grinned and went to Sirius and bowed. Sirius chuckled and tried to bow back. "I hope you're happy." April said to Sirius.

"Very." Sirius replied. April left with the twins. Rhia grinned broadly up at her dad as she sat on his lap. "Sorry about that guys." He said to the others.

"No, it's fine." Jenny said in a strained voice.

"Please get back together with her!" Lily said. "Please, she's so depressed without you around and I can't stand her being like that and-" Sirius held up a hand for Lily to be quiet.

"Please Lily, I know what I'm going to do. It came to me in a dream" Sirius said.

"Oh Merlin, here we go again." Remus muttered. James chuckled and Jenny turned and smiled at Remus.

"I am going to get-" Sirius said, pausing dramatically

"Divorced" Remus muttered, "You've told me already." Sirius turned to Remus.

"Yes, I will be getting that but there's something else." Sirius said.

"And what's that Sirius?" James asked, leaning forwards. Lily's hand was playing with the back of his hair. Jenny was raising a glass to his lips and Emma had just run in and wanting to sit on Remus' lap.

"I'm getting a job" Sirius announced proudly. Jenny choked on her drink while Remus dropped Emma and Lily accidentally pulled on James' hair.

"What!" They all asked at the same time. Sirius beamed proudly. They all looked at him like he'd gone mad. Sirius Black, get a job? What was the world coming to? Sirius would never be able to get a job and keep with it for more then a month before he got bored and then quit. The four told him this and he looked at them defiantly.

"I'm getting a job. When Remus was off getting us some butterbeers at the Leaky Cauldron, I bumped into this guy, Raynor Philips, he owns the Holyhead Harpies. They're looking for a new coach, and most of the coaches can't stand the fact that he girls on the team are so...powerful. Then he met me and we got talking. He's heard of April, apparently hers and James' reputations are bigger then I thought, anyway, I've been pretty much dominated by April for a while so I told him I could cope. The pay is good, hours are flexible, and kids are allowed to work." Sirius beamed. "Oh yeah, and free tickets to the matches and the world cup because their chaser, Mary Harton, is on the English team." Sirius said.

"You're becoming a quidditch coach?" James said slowly. Sirius nodded eagerly.

"Of an all female team?" Remus added. Sirius grinned.

"I'm a free man now." Sirius said, but with a bit less enthusiasm. Lily looked over to Jenny. They each knew what the other was thinking. Sirius had gone mad. He wouldn't have done this if April hadn't decided to divorce him. On the other hand, maybe it was a good idea, at least Sirius was doing...something, even if it was to coach the Holyhead Harpies. That was definitely not going to sit well with April.

"Well, as long as you're happy Sirius." Jenny said. "But the Holyhead Harpies? Are you sure?"

"Firstly, Jenny my dearest." Sirius said, "I will never be happy, secondly, why not!" Rhia laughed at Sirius' last outburst and Sirius grinned at her. Orion climbed onto James' lap without any warning. Lily smiled at James and Orion waved his new lightsaber around and knocked over a glass of muggle wine that James had asked Lily to buy.

"Orion!" Jenny said in alarm as Lily started to get up.

"It's ok." Lily said, she lifted everything and saw the wine soak through the tablecloth. "Evanesco!" The wine stain suddenly disappeared.

"Oo, more magic." Orion said. He got ready to hit over another glass when Lily caught hold of the lightsaber to stop Orion.

"AH!" She said letting go of it quickly. "Damn, that thing is really hot!" James gave Lily a grin as she waved her hand to cool off the burn she'd just received.

"Well, I thought Orion might like an authentic present." James said, "Don't you like it Orion?"

"Love it" Orion said with a grin. Lily nursed her hand and hit James round the head with her unhurt hand. James gave a light hearted chuckle, as did everyone else. Rhia soon broke out into a wide yawn and snuggled against Sirius and closed her eyes.

"Well, I think I'd better get going. I'm going to start doing up Grimmauld Place to make it look less Black and more happy." Sirius said. He picked up Rhia in his arms.

"Alright, we'll see you sometime soon." James said getting up and giving Sirius a quick hug.

"No more drink!" Remus warned Sirius as he started to leave the room.

"Don't worry Moony, no more drink for me. You've opened up my eyes." Sirius said.

"That sounds too wrong." Jenny said shaking her head. James laughed and heard Sirius shouting the address he wanted to go to from the fireplace in the other room.

"Well that dinner went...ok." Remus said uncertainly.

"It was fine until April and Sirius started biting off each other's heads." James said, he stretched and put his hands behind his head. Lily gave a slight hiss of pain as she did something to the burn in her hand. James looked at her with a look of concern. "Are you ok?" James asked, he looked ready to get up. Lily walked over to James and snaked her arms around him.

"I will be, no thanks to you." Lily said. James looked at Lily with doleful eyes, he pulled her around and onto his lap.

"What did I do?" James asked. Jenny chuckled.

"Who bought Orion the Light Saber?" Jenny asked.

"Ah." James said. Lily smiled and put an arm around James' neck and kissed the top of his forehead.

"Well, we better get going as well." Remus said. He started to get up and pulled Jenny to her feet. Jenny gave a light moan.

"Can't we stay here tonight?" Jenny asked.

"No spare bedrooms." Lily said with a sorry shrug. "Maybe when before Emma was born-"

"You need a bigger house." Jenny said, pretending to be angry.

"We're thinking of getting the loft converted" James said. Jenny nodded and turned to Remus.

"I'll take Bo home, don't worry. You just go home and sleep." Remus said.

"I love you so much." Jenny said at that remark. Remus smiled and Jenny apparated away. Remus left the kitchen in search of Bo. James seemed to take this as his cue to start kissing Lily. She giggled slightly as he began nuzzling her neck.

"James, stop it." She muttered.

"Sorry, can't." He said. Lily looked across the table and saw Emma staring at them with her eyebrows raised. Lily took James' head in her hands and practically wrenched him away. "James, not in front of the children." She said. He shrugged.

"They're going to do it one day." James concluded after a few minutes of thought.

"No they are not!" Lily said, feeling slightly offended. "Harry and Emma are going to grow up to be good children and good adults."

"Like you were?" James challenged. Lily was about to say yes but stopped herself. Damn James! Damn him to hell. Lily clapped him around the head and got off his lap. James laughing.

"Come on Emma, time to go to bed." Lily said.

"Can we read a story?" Emma asked.

"Of course darling." Lily said, taking Emma's hand.

"Can you read me one Lily?" James asked, bouncing up and down in mock excitement in his seat. Lily turned to him.

"I'll deal with you later." Lily said. James grinned.

"I can't wait." He said, the widest grin plastered across his face.

"Just put Harry to bed!" Lily said.

"Yes ma'am!" James said getting up.

* * *

"Daddy!" Rhia screamed in Sirius' ear the next morning. Sirius gave an annoyed murmur and pulled the pillow over his head. Rhia laughed and turned to Orion who grinned back. He stood up and jumped on Sirius.

"Daddy! Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!" Orion said jumping around in circles on Sirius' back. Each time he did Sirius gave a little "Oof"

"What!" Sirius said turning over as Orion was in the air. Orion landed on Sirius' stomach and laughed. Rhia laughed with him

"The picture of the evil lady was shouting at us." Rhia said with a slight pout. "Destroy!" Rhia said.

"YEAH!" Orion agreed. "Destroy!" Orion said raising his hand. Rhia grinned.

"Huh?" Sirius asked sleepily as Rhia and Orion climbed off the bed and seemed to war dance around the room "What the-" Sirius sat up and watched his two eldest walk around the room chanting.

"Destroy! Destroy! Destroy!" They chanted.

"What have you two been eating?" Sirius asked as he pulled Rhia up onto the bed. She laughed.

"The strange creature gave us a blue drink" Rhia said with a grin.

"Oh no." Sirius said. "KREACHER!" He shouted. The door opened and the old house elf came in muttering. Orion gave a shout and ran to the desk and hid under it, glaring at the house elf. Rhia grinned and pulled herself away from Sirius and went to the house elf. The elf came to her shoulders and she held out her hand.

"Hello, I'm Rhia." She said. The house elf merely stared at her rather unamused.

"Stupid blood traitor brats thinking she is better then Kreacher." The house elf muttered. Rhia gave him a look of confusion.

"Blood traitor brat? Nooo." Rhia said shaking her head. "Daddy's brat" She said brightly. Orion laughed from under the desk and Rhia looked at Orion and grinned.

"Rhia." Sirius said, "Kreacher, what did you feed my children?"

"Oh, they is your children? Kreacher is very sorry, Kreacher is thinking that they were strangers." Kreacher said. Sirius got out of the bed and picked up Kreacher by the neck.

"Kreacher, you know very well they were my children, what did you give them?" Sirius demanded.

"Destroy HIM!!" Orion shouted. Rhia laughed and started waving her fists. Sirius dodged out of his children's way and glared at Kreacher. He was chuckling slightly as Rhia and Orion went around waving their fists.

"It will be over in an hour sir. Kreacher is only giving them a potion Master Regulus made many years ago. He was a proper master to Kreacher, unlike you blood Traitor." Kreacher said. He didn't get to say much more as Sirius flung him against the wall.

"Orion, Rhia." Sirius said. Both children turned to look at their dad.

"Yes Daddy." Rhia said sweetly, she tucked her hands behind her back and seemed to twist on the balls of her feet.

"Stay in this room." Sirius said. He watched as Kreacher inched his way out of the room.

"We watch Star Wars?" Orion said eagerly.

"No, we can't." Sirius said. Orion's face fell.

"Why?"

"No TV idiot!" Rhia said clapping Orion round the head

"Don't hit me." Rhia hit Orion on the arm. "Stop it!" She hit him again. Orion seemed to growl at Rhia and she was equal to the growl.

"Oh Merlin." Sirius muttered. He managed to get a child under each arm as they started fighting across him trying to reach each other.

"Don't hit me!" Orion snapped. Rhia would then grin.

"Children stop or do you want me to take you back to your mother?" Sirius said. Both children went silent. Sirius felt a sharp pain at his heart when he thought about April. No, push all thoughts of April to the back of the mind, concentrate on the children, get a job, fix up the house. That's what he had to do. Don't think about April.

"Sorry Daddy." Rhia said,

"Sorry." Orion said. Rhia hugged Sirius around the waist from her hanging position on his arms while Orion just decided to be a dead weight. Sirius couldn't hold them any more and Orion dropped to the floor. He grinned and stood up.

"So watch Superman?" He asked.

"No TV!" Rhia said.

"TV good." Orion said.

"But we don't have one here." Sirius said. Orion's mouth dropped open and he looked like he could faint. Rhia shook her head and Sirius put her down on the bed and crouched by Orion.

"No TV?" He asked.

"No Orion, but don't worry. As soon as I'm ready, we'll go to a quidditch pitch and watch a quidditch match ok?" Sirius asked. Rhia beamed at this but Orion looked a bit sceptical. "And then we'll...um..." Sirius looked at Rhia, but like the four year old could help him out. He looked around the room frantically for an idea. "Then we'll do what you want as long as it's not watching star wars or TV because there isn't a TV."

"Go home then." Orion said with a babyish pout. Sirius sighed and hung his head slightly.

"You want to go home?" Sirius asked. Orion nodded. He looked over to Rhia.

"Do you want to go home?" Sirius asked her. Rhia shook her head.

"No. I want to stay with Daddy forever." She said with a smile.

"Alright, well, we'll take you home Orion and then Rhia and I will go out. Ok?" He asked Orion. Orion nodded and looked a bit happier. Sirius got a feeling that Orion didn't really like Grimmauld place. Well, why should he when Sirius himself loathed it? He got up and looked at the children.

"Ok, you two go and play for a bit while Daddy gets changed." Sirius said.

* * *

April threw her spoon into the sink. Why was she so anxious? Sirius could be trusted with the children couldn't he? It's not like she knew where he was anyway, or what he was going to do. He had forgotten the kids before. A feeling of dread fell over April and she went white. She could hear Jessie and Kaylee laughing in the living room where they were throwing foam bricks at each other. They had been some of Orion's old toys. Foam bricks that you could stack but they didn't hurt you. April used to use them as stress balls when Sirius frustrated her. She let out a shaky breath and went into the living room and lay on the sofa and watched the twins throw these foam bricks at each other. They were laughing, which was a good thing.

"Kaylee, Jessie." April said. The two twins looked at her and grinned. Jessie started crawling towards her and stopped at the sofa and looked at the sofa. How to get over this thing to mummy...

April smiled and picked up Jessie. She grinned and then cuddled against April. Kaylee decided that April was boring so she went crawling around the room and soon disappeared in the gap between the sofa and the wall. The fireplace suddenly exploded into flames and Orion stepped out, sooty faced.

"Hello Mummy." He said beaming. April was breathing quickly.

"Come here." April said. Orion ran over and hugged April. He climbed onto the sofa and started making marks in the soot on his face. A few seconds later Sirius and Rhia came through the fireplace.

"What are you doing here?" April asked.

"Just to tell you that you can have your son back. Apparently he prefers..." Sirius took a sharp breath. "He prefers you to me." He said.

"And where are you going?" April asked.

"I'm taking Rhia to work with me. It'll be a good experience for her." Sirius said defiantly.

"Work?" April asked like he was joking.

"Yes. I have a job." Sirius said coldly. April tried not to laugh. Sirius working, was this a joke? Sirius tensed and straightened his back.

"Come on Rhia. I'll show you what I do now." Sirius said, turning back to the fireplace. Rhia gave April a wave before disappearing after Sirius. April sat, mouth open. What just happened? Sirius had a job and he'd taken Rhia!

"Holy-"

* * *

**A/N:-And thus, we learn that Rhia is a daddy's girl, and Orion is a mummy's boy. Rhia prefers Sirius over April, Orion is vice versa. I just finished writing this storyline and I'm working ont eh next on, which should be about....4 years after this, when HArry's about 9 or 10..havent decided yet...why fo Kaylee and Jessie still have to be so damned young!! The next chapter will be set a month after this. Oh and Spillgirl, just chill, i was just joking, i'm not angry with you, but your reaction was funny....:D You know i love you and all my reviewers....If i can get to 312 reviews...I'll do a double update though knowing Kaylee she'll keep reviewing...and reviewing....and reviewing.....and reviewing, until she herself has given me all the reviews i want. So yeah, 312 reviews, and i give you a double update :D**


	19. Halloween

**A/N:-AS PROMISED! The Double update. 317 reviews....jesus christ people....I wud have done double update anyway...sheesh! you people are soo funny and I love you all**

* * *

**Halloween **

**1 1/2 months later**

**Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry would like to invite you to their annual Halloween feast on October 31st.**

**This honour is not usually bestowed on many people. You will be joining the teachers and your children may have a separate table of their own in the same hall.**

**If you can come, please send a reply via owl**

**Albus Dumbledore**

Lily read out loud as she leant against James. James had his arm around her and glanced over the letter.

"So are we going?" James asked with a grin. Lily looked at James.

"What kind of stupid question is that?" She asked with a smile. "Of course we're going." She said. James bent over slightly and kissed Lily. It was slightly awkward as they did have Emma lying between them and Harry sprawled across the end of the bed, his head buried in the folds of duvet around James' feet. Lily wanted to deepen the kiss and James without his top on just made her want him more then ever.

"What's the date today?" James asked, kissing near Lily's ear. Lily had her eyes closed and relished every touch of James' lips.

"Next week." She said. James returned his lips to Lily's lips.

"Do you think April and Sirius will go?" He murmured against her lips.

"Don't talk about them." She muttered. She caught James' lips and shifted slightly so that she could get closer to him. Emma gave a soft and tired moan and rolled over, demanding more space. Lily and James broke apart unwillingly. James sighed as Lily pulled Emma onto her and let Emma cuddle against her body.

"We don't get to have any privacy anymore." James muttered. Lily looked at him sympathetically. She knew what he meant. Over the past month Lily and James had either Rhia and Orion or the twins. If they had the twins, Jenny and Remus had the older two. April and Sirius' arguments were getting worse, so bad that it wasn't safe to let the children stay with them any more. The final straw had been when Sirius had turned up at April's house with official divorce papers, both Muggle and Wizarding with a demand that he got to keep Rhia. Everyone had been expecting the divorce, but for SIRIUS to give it to April, shocked everyone. They were expecting it to be the other way round.

April had signed the papers resentfully, she did not want to lose her daughter over this, in fact, she wanted to keep all the children, which was another surprise to everyone. At the moment April was too dangerous to leave on her own. Lily had found her a few nights ago looking longingly at a knife in the kitchen. April's sister, Becky, had come over from America, with her son Nick, and was living with April and trying to stop her from doing anything stupid. It seemed in this ordeal, April was coming off worse. Sirius was really prospering.

It seemed that being a quidditch coach really suited Sirius. He was making plenty of money, he didn't have to work all the time, and the time that he did have off he spent with Rhia. It seemed that when Orion told him that he preferred April to Sirius, Sirius took it as a personal insult and got incredibly hurt by it. Orion seemed to prefer the comfort of home and April to Sirius, which also greatly surprised everyone. From this predicament it was growing obvious. Orion was a mummy's boy and Rhia was a daddy's girl. Sirius seemed to be doing so well, he'd decided that his old motorbike needed a new coat of paint, even though he hadn't ridden it for literally years, he had also decided that Rhia was going to be spoilt and pampered by him for the rest of her foreseeable future so he bought her a snow white pony with long elegant wings that stretched out like those of an eagle. It was still only very young and it also enraged April. So as revenge she bought Orion a full set of child sized Star Wars toys. April hated Star wars more then anything, but she'd stand in a tornado before Sirius won over her children.

"Don't worry, it'll be over soon, hopefully." Lily said. She still wasn't entirely sure why her children were sleeping in her bed either. They currently had Orion and Rhia over and though Harry didn't like sharing a room with the boisterous three year old, Emma loved Rhia. Perhaps the children were getting closer to them. She certainly knew that Bo was now doing everything his parents told him and tried to stay as close to them as possible. The door opened and Orion's sleepy head poked in the room.

"Where mummy?" He asked. He still wasn't used to living in the different houses and being away from April.

"She'll be over later, Orion." Lily said gently. Orion went to James' side of the bed and yawned. James picked him up and put him on the bed.

"Want mummy." Orion said.

"I know but she'll be here soon ok?" James said. Orion gave him a sleepy nod. "You can go back to sleep if you want" Orion nodded and rested his head against James' chest. Lily gave James a tired look. She felt sorry for the Black children. They shouldn't have to cope with all this and all April and Sirius were doing was turning Rhia and Orion against the other parent. Orion was soon asleep and James patted his back gently.

"I'll be so glad when the war that is April and Sirius is over." James said. "Not that I don't like the kids but it's a bit awkward-"

"Lily." Came Rhia's soft voice. Lily and James looked to the door. Rhia was walking in, pulling behind her a teddy bear that belonged to Emma. She went to the bed and climbed up.

"Come here Rhia." Lily said. She felt slightly stunned and confused. Four children in her bed...what was happening? Rhia sat between Lily and James, where Emma had been sleeping and put her head against Lily for comfort. Lily looked to James uncertainly.

"We have to get those two back together." They both said at the same time. If not for April and Sirius' sake but for the children.

* * *

"I'm not going." April said.

"Come on April. It's just dinner." Lily said.

"And it's not like you have anything else to do." Jenny pleaded.

"Yes I do, I have work, then I have to go out with Becky!" April said waving to her sister.

"Oh, it's fine, I'm planning on spending Halloween with mum and dad." Becky said with a charming little smile. April stared at Becky in horror.

"You're supposed to be my sister!" April said.

"Yes, but I'm also mum and dad's daughter. April, I demand you go to the Halloween feast at Hogwarts. Merlin knows it'll do you good to get out a bit more. All day you're either at work or at home. You'll wear yourself out." Becky said in a concerned voice.

"Yes mother." April said bitterly but sarcastically.

"Becky's right" Jenny said, "You have to get out-" April opened her mouth to interrupt but Jenny ploughed on, "even if Sirius will be there. We've had enough April. Your fight with Sirius is stopping us from having any fun at all." Jenny said, her voice reflected her growing anger.

"And we're fed up. Either you and Sirius learn to get along like civiliased people like you did the first time you broke up or we'll completely ignore you and adopt your children for our own." Lily threatened. Jenny looked at Lily slightly startled but then nodded.

"And we mean it." Jenny said. April stood there gaping. Her friends were threatening her. They weren't supposed to do that. Was she really affecting their lives that much! April looked at her two friends. She could see the sincerity in both their eyes. As she searched their minds she knew they meant it. She knew she was ruining their lives. Lily and James were suffering from lack of privacy that a relationship needed, their time as spent up either working or looking after the children, and as both of them work, neither had much time for four children. Jenny and Remus couldn't cope with two more children, two werewolves were more then enough for them to cope with, they just couldn't handle another two children.

"Alright." April said quietly, lowering her eyes like a child. "I'll behave but if he provokes me-"

"Thank you!" Jenny said, she hugged April tightly. Lily grinned and joined in the group hug. April gave them the first real smile she'd given anyone in a few weeks.

* * *

Jenny threw her things onto a table. Kaylee crawled towards her so fast she headbutted Jenny's legs and got her head stuck between them. Kaylee started squealing with good humour. Jenny laughed and picked up Kaylee.

"How many times have I told you not to do that?" Jenny said with a laugh. Kaylee laughed and pulled on a lock of Jenny's hair. Jenny held the lock and waved it in Kaylee's face as she carried Kaylee to the living room. Kaylee laughed and tried to bat the hair away from her.

"So, April going?" Remus asked Jenny. He looked up from the floor where he was making sure Bo didn't drop Jessie.

"Yeah, but only for us. She read mine and Lily's minds." Jenny said.

"How do you know?" Remus asked.

"After about...fourteen years of knowing her you can feel it and just know." Jenny said. Remus smiled as Bo put Jessie down and Jessie began chasing Bo on her hands and knees.

* * *

Lily was literally skipping as she walked through the halls of her old school. Her heart was beating so fast she could hear it in her ears. She wanted to just start dancing she was so happy. James grinned and put his arm around Lily. He felt just as happy as Lily. Ah the memories this place brought back. The large grand halls made of stone, the marble steps, the talking suits of armour, the ghosts floating around. The children found it enchanting as well. Emma and Rhia were looking suspiciously at a ghost of a dog that was running beside them. Emma looked at Rhia uncertainly and reached out to touch it. When her hand went through the dog she yelped in surprise and clung to Lily's leg.

Sirius, James and Remus started chuckling. The girls all knew they had something planned. What it was, they wouldn't tell them but the marauders had something up their sleeves. April was walking silently next to Lily with a wide smile on her face. She was staring at all the pictures and the portraits. Her eyes seeking out the beauties of the castle. Sirius was on the other side of Remus. He was searching for all the hidden passages, trying to see if he could remember where they all were. Him and James would try and point them all out then Remus got out the Marauders map and searched to see if they'd got them all.

"Why did you bring that map with you?" Jenny asked as she looked at the map.

"It's going to be handed on." Sirius said with a despairing look.

"Oh god, to who?" Lily asked. James grinned.

"You'll see." James said. Lily gave him a slightly suspicious look.

"James." Lily said. James grinned and simply kissed her gently.

"Ah! Marauders, Lily, Jenny, April and of course children." Came Dumbledore's soft voice from on top of the main staircase. "You're early, the feast doesn't start for another hour."

"We were wondering if you would allow us to provide a little entertainment." Remus said. There was that cheeky sparkle in Dumbledore's eyes.

"Oh really? And what might that be Mr. Lupin?" He asked.

"You'll see, we just need time to set up." Sirius said. Dumbledore gave them a small smile and nodded.

"Do what you must, the password to my office is Pumpkin cakes" Dumbledore said with a wink. The boys all darted off before the girls could say anything.

"Rude!" Lily remarked with a smile.

"Ah, don't worry Lily, it'll be alright, now who are all these little ones." Dumbledore asked he took in the children. "My, you've managed to get yourselves a nice little collection haven't you?" The girls all glanced at each other with smiles on their faces. Jenny was holding Jessie and April was holding Kaylee. All the children were staring up at this weird but kind silver haired man.

"Come, we have so much to talk about. And I want to know these little children a bit more." Rhia and Emma looked at each other and ran after Dumbledore.

"Excuse me." Emma said, running in front of Dumbledore and cutting him off.

"Who are you?" Rhia asked, joining Emma

"Emma." Lily said sharply.

"Rhia." April snapped. Dumbledore held up a hand to the two.

"I'm Professor Dumbledore, it is so nice you meet you." He said holding out a hand for them. Emma and Rhia started giggling. "And you must be Emma Potter." He said to Emma. Emma nodded and then Dumbledore turned to Rhia. "Rhiannon Black?" He asked. Rhia nodded. Both girls looked at each other and then at their mothers. Lily smiled and April was trying not to laugh. Harry and Bo then looked at each other, who was this strange man? Though they had met Dumbledore before, they couldn't remember it. A small inkling of a memory stirred in both of them. Orion went up to Dumbledore and walked around him in circles.

"Do your children always act like this when meeting new people?" Dumbledore asked with a laugh, he was highly amused.

"No." Jenny said.

"Usually the girls introduce themselves before anything else can happen" April said.

"Then Bo and Harry will try and trick you into doing something" Lily said.

"Then Orion will tell you you're-" April stopped and waited for Orion, who decided that Dumbledore wasa nice man but he wanted to call him something anyway.

"You're an old fart." Orion said. Dumbledore started laughing.

"And these two are Kaylee and Jessie." April said indicating to the twins. Dumbledore smiled quite broadly.

"I like your children. Follow me." He said. Rhia and Emma seemed to love Dumbledore immediately and each one took one of Dumbledore's hands. Orion was running around squeezing between suits of armour and the wall, staring at pictures. Bo and Harry appeared to be deep in conversation but soon they were laughing and playing hide and seek with Orion as they ran along. April was having difficulty keeping Kaylee in her arms. She was wriggling around so much trying to get free. Jessie was contented to stay in Jenny's arms and gaze at the building with her mouth open slightly.

"Hogwarts has just captured the hearts of seven more children." Lily said.

"You can count on that happening Lily." April said. "It's great to be back." They looked ahead. Dumbledore seemed to be in an 'intellectual' conversation regarding Emma's cat Baloo and Rhia's new Pony.

"Well, I for one am glad we're back." Jenny said. "But I swear, the castle's gotten bigger." Jenny said looking around.

"Probably" Lily said, "When I came with Remus it just seemed to go on endlessly."

"Dumbledore seems to be getting along with the girls." April said with a smile.

"What do you think they'll do when the meet McGonagall?" Jenny asked. The three of them laughed but stopped when they heard someone clear her throat. They all stopped dead. That cough! They turned around and saw McGonagall standing behind them. Complete with hair tied back tightly, hat on head and stern look on her face.

"Professor." Jenny said sweetly.

"Mrs. Lupin, I expected more from you at this age." She said. Jenny gave her a guilty smile and shot a look at her friends.

"What, may I ask, are you doing here so early?" McGonagall asked.

"Um, do you remember who we married? Well, they've decided to-"

"Oh please don't tell me there's going to be more..._Marauder's Halloween_ tricks?" McGonagall asked, cutting off Lily. All three girls nodded. McGonagall turned on her heel and started at a brisk walk for the great hall. The three of them burst out laughing. Kaylee and Jessie started laughing because their mum was laughing and soon the laughter was joined by an all too familiar cackle.

"Damn!" April shouted. They turned again to see Peeves the Poltergeist coming for them. Lily stood up straight.

"Peeves, how are you?" She asked with a sweet smile and a kind voice. It seemed to freeze Peeves in mid air.

"Uh...good." He said uncertainly. "Hey, aren't you Uppity Evans?" Lily rolled her eyes at Peeves nickname for her. He started laughing. "You are, you are! Uppity Evans has returned to Hogwarts!" He said flying found in circles.

"Peeves, that is enough." Dumbledore said. "Now, ladies, if you would like to follow me, your children are already in my office." They all went into Dumbledore's office where the children were all staring at Fawkes the Phoenix. Dumbledore chuckled to himself and sat down.

"Now, I have had the pleasure of meeting these little rascals, who are these two lovely ladies?" He asked, looking at Kaylee and Jessie. The twins seemed to look at each other and then looked at Dumbledore.

"Ka-Kay" Kaylee tried to say, "Ka-" Dumbledore laughed.

"Kaylee I presume." He said. Kaylee didn't appear to have heard as she sat on April's lap frowning and repeatedly saying

"Ka-ey-Ka-" As she tried to pronounce her own name.

"Ah, the wonders of the infant mind, so young yet so willing to grow up." Dumbledore said.

"I'm actually rather happy at the age I am now." Lily said.

"You would be." Jenny retorted with a laugh. Lily shrugged. The moment they stepped into the castle all their worries seemed to have lifted, well for all of them but Sirius and April, who despite being civil to each other were still rather cold and just could not forget their partner was there. They were all reverting back to their teenage selves. What a marvellous effect Hogwarts had on them.

"Well, can I help it?" Lily said, pretending to be stuck up. April, Lily and Jenny all laughed. Dumbledore seemed to be distracted by Jessie, who had somehow climbed on the table and was reaching for his glasses.

"Why, Jessie appears to have your eyes April." Dumbledore said as he had a staring competition with Jessie. April smiled. "And no doubt they have inherited your looks as well." April seemed to blush slightly. A very rare thing for her.

"Thank you professor I-" The door opened up and the three 'men' came running in breathless and laughing.

"Sorry-professor-" Sirius said between laughing and taking a breath.

"Had to get chased by Filch for old times sake." James said. Lily turned and gave him a harsh look.

"What did you do?" Lily asked.

"Nothing" James said, none too reassuringly. Lily gave him a sceptical look as he lifted her up and took her place then pulled Lily on his lap again. Dumbledore gave a small smile.

"It is nice to see that you are all still living relatively happily together." He said. "Despite your many trials throughout your short lives" This caused all of them to smile. Rhia and Emma suddenly screamed and bolted for their parents.

"The bird-" Emma started to say.

"The bird set on fire!" Rhia stammered. Dumbledore turned to where Fawkes had been entertaining his young guests. The boys were all staring in absolute horror, had they just killed this nice old man's bird? The Adults all started laughing slightly. Harry looked at his parents as if to say I didn't do it.

"Don't worry Harry, Fawkes does that from time to time." Lily said with a smirk. Harry heaved a sigh of relief. The door opened and McGonagall and a tall lanky greasy haired professor with a hooked nose came in.

"Dumbledore, I insist you have a word with those three right there. Eight years out of Hogwarts and they haven't changed!" McGonagall said, though Lily thought she had a slight smile on her face.

"I told you not to invite them to the feast. No students, ghosts or teachers can get in, only house elves." Said the other professor. James eyes widened at the professor's voice. Sirius' attention snapped straight to him.

"Snivellus." Sirius said. The word was dripping with hate and venom. James stood up, nearly making Lily tumble into Dumbledore's desk.

"What are you doing here?" James asked. His hands itching to get near his wand.

"Sirius, James, please calm down. Severus is a teacher here." Dumbledore said, getting up from his seat. Severus Snape didn't flinch under the six sets of glares he was getting from six pairs of eyes. James and Sirius turned to Dumbledore

"But he's a Death Eater. It's been proven and-" James was starting to say but Dumbledore cut him off.

"James, I would like to assure you that Severys Snape, never was and never will be a Death Eater." Dumbledore said. April turned with her mouth open to Dumbledore.

"But he's killed tens of people." April said. "It's in your record." She said to Snape.

"They think I killed that many, they cannot prove a thing, it is simply because people like you, Black, Aurors such as yourself like to jump to conclusions before being given solid hard facts and evidence." Snape said bitterly. April looked like she was ready to rise but Sirius put a hand on her shoulder and forced her to stay down. He quickly removed it when April glared at him.

"It's April Marsden actually." April snapped. A malicious sneer developed on Snape's face.

"So, you break up again, how does it feel Black to lose a wife and your children? Must be awful. Have you any family left?" Snape asked. Sirius was ready to beat the living daylights out of Snape. And he would have if Remus wasn't holding him back, though Remus would have dearly loved to watch Sirius get his own back.

"That's enough!" Dumbledore commanded. He got the attention of every person in the room. "It is Halloween and you will all lay aside your differences, April, Sirius, Severus and James. You will all lay aside your differences and get along. It is supposed to be a happy occasion after all." Dumbledore said with stern eyes that seemed to make everyone shiver slightly.

"Oooo" Orion said, breaking the silence as the head of a baby Fawkes poked his head out of a pile of ashes. Dumbledore then smiled.

"Now the House elves have prepared a wonderful feast. Let us go down and enjoy it and see to this...troublesome doorway." Dumbledore said with a smirk.

* * *

The students of Hogwarts made a clear pathway for Dumbledore as he came to the doors to the Great hall. They were chatting animatedly and were anxious to have their feast. James and Sirius gave each other wicked smiles that everyone recognised instantly.

"James." Lily said sternly. James gave her a smile and flashed a grin at her.

"Yes dear." He asked. Lily knew she wasn't going to get anything out of him so she gave up before she even started. Dumbledore went to the doors and simply pushed them open immediately a shower of sparks flew from every direction like on huge firework display. Silver and purple glitter fell from the doorway, framing Dumbledore in a weird sparkly background. The students all gasped in awe and wonder. They rushed into the hall where more fireworks started whizzing through the air. There were all kinds of different fireworks, Lily could have sworn one of them spelled her name, but maybe it was her eyes playing tricks on her. The students all sat down. The teachers went to their seats and the guests sat with the teachers. The children had been given their own table and they seemed to be there already. Lily and April glanced at each other looking rather confused...how did that happen? Sirius gave a hearty laugh at their expressions. Words began to form in the middle of the room so that everyone could read them

**_MESSERS MOONY, PADFOOT AND PRONGS-_**

Lily looked at James, while Jenny gave Remus a long look. Both men gave them identical pleased with themselves grins.

**_-WOULD LIKE TO PRESENT THE HOGWARTS HALLOWEEN FEAST. EAT DRINK AND BE MERRY_**

"You guys never grow up do you?" Lily said as James put an arm around Lily's waist. They sat down in seats next to Dumbledore. April was sitting on Dumbledore's other side, and to her annoyance, Sirius sat next to her. Jenny and Remus sat nest to James. Lily could see the students looking at them and then turning to their friends. Dumbledore stood up as the hall still glittered from sparks from fireworks and the falling glitter that didn't seem to settle at all.

"As soon as the glitter hits the floor or any surface it's moved back to the ceiling and falls again." James whispered to Lily.

"You are incorrigible aren't you?" Lily asked with a grin. James gave her a grin and kissed her cheek.

"Students, teachers, and guests." Dumbledore said loudly for everyone to hear. Everyone went silent, except Emma and Rhia who were bopping to a tune only they could hear. Kaylee and Jessie were with the rest of the children and they seemed to be enjoying themselves, even if they were only seven months old. Rhia was next to Jessie and Orion was next to Kaylee. April seemed confident that they would be able to feed them, if not the adults were always nearby.

"Before we begin to eat I would like to welcome some of the best students that Hogwarts had the honour of having. They left eight years ago and no doubt you have heard of them." Dumbledore said. "I would like you all to give a warm welcome to Mr. Remus and Mrs. Jenny Lupin, Mr. Sirius Black, Miss. April Marsden and Lily and James Potter." Lily and James seemed to get a bigger round of applause then everyone else. "And their children, who sit in front of us." Dumbledore said pointing a hand at the children. The students all started to crane their necks to see if Harry was their. Soon all the students seemed to want a glimpse at the boy who lived. Lily bit her lip slightly anxiously. She hated anything that served as a reminder of their experience with Voldemort.

"Now, without further ado. Please, dig in." Dumbledore said. He waved a hand and tonnes of food appeared on the silver and golden platters, bowls and drinks appeared in the goblets. The children all stopped what they were doing and stared at the plates in wonder. Bo picked up a plate and had a look under it.

"How did that happen?" He asked. Harry picked up a small bowl of Mashed Potatoes.

"Hungry!" Orion said angrily as the older children started trying to figure out where all the food had come from. He pulled a plate of chicken drumsticks towards him that Rhia was holding. He grinned and grabbed some with his hands.

"So what have you been doing recently with yourselves?" Dumbledore asked them all pleasantly.

"Oh, the usual." Lily said.

"Work, looking after the house, looking after our family, looking after April's family." James said. Lily swatted his arm.

"Ah yes, I have heard of this incident that has befallen your household." Dumbledore said to April and Sirius.

"It couldn't be helped." Sirius said.

"We've always had our differences." April said.

"That is not what I recall." Dumbledore said. "I remember a time when you two felt like it was Heaven to be within each other's presence, and call me an old man, but I believe that you two still feel that but are scared to show it." He said. Sirius gave Dumbledore a confused look.

"Excuse me?" He asked.

"You two are afraid to take on the responsibility that having a family has forced on you. I believe that you two will work out your differences." He said with a smile, "Now, how about this feast, it seems that the marauders have certainly outdone themselves this time. This is exquisite." Dumbledore said. James and Remus immediately launched into a tale of how they came up with the idea and how long they had been planning it. In the end Lily swapped placed with Remus and talked to Jenny and they talked to some of the professors next to them. Professors Sprout and Flitwick. They even had a conversation with Hagrid across the table which ended in Jenny and Lily in a laughing fit. April and Sirius were making rather polite and strained small talk though both were starting to reconsider their divorce but neither one wanted to tell the other

* * *

**A/N:-I'm crying with happiness and ready to scream up and down with happiness. YOU ARE THE BEST LOT OF READERS/REVIEWERS I'VE EVER HAD!! just for that i'm giving you all kisses, boys, girls, men women, all of you, I'm giving you all kisses and hugs. I lub u lots and lots. And lots and lots.....i think you get the idea. BAsically i feel really touched that so many of you care about my story....never really had that before....you've nearly beaten my record of 318 reviews for when i first posted Fortress of Shadows...geez guys, thanks. :D So, next chappie will conclude the storyline then i skip a few years. Yes, i know that i'm not really concentrating on Harry but there's so many things that i can do. I'll try and include HArry a bit more in some of the next storylines, and hopefully the last stretch of years, cause HArry will be bout...um...9, yeah, he'll be 9 in 2 chapters time. Anyway, I LOVED writing this chapter, spesh the bit in Hogwarts. I love writing about Hogwarts. I get to do so much with it! and the bit with Lily and James somehow having 4 kids in their bed....Kinda got that idea from cheaper by the dozen and the sound of music. I've been watching many movies recently. Anyway, just to boast now...but...I finished reading Gone With the Wind today, I'm so please with myself 1011 words in 5 days including writing the past 4 chapters and the next one :D I'm so pleased with myself.**


	20. Settling Differences

**Settling differences**

Sirius stood in Harry's room, standing over his bed. Orion was in Harry's bed and Harry was sprawled over a mattress on the floor. Sirius knew that April was putting Emma and Rhia away. Why James and Lily still hadn't come back from Hogwarts was beyond them. Apparently they had some stuff to discuss with Dumbledore so Sirius and April had brought the children back to put them to bed. Sirius smiled and bent over and kissed Orion's forehead.

"Goodnight Orion." Sirius whispered. He got up and left the room, leaving the door slightly open. He head a door close and he turned quickly. April was coming out of Emma's room. The door was closed and she had her head against the door. She didn't seem to notice Sirius standing there staring at her. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Um, are you ok?" Sirius asked. April jumped slightly and looked at Sirius. She tried to give him a weak smile before walking down the stairs. Sirius followed her. Dumbledore had said many things during the feast. Many of them he directed at Sirius and April though he didn't make it too obvious. It had got Sirius thinking. Dumbledore had said something about so few happy families, that Voldemort had tried to rip up families and killed so many and there were so few who were still together and that he was proud of them all. That had really affected Sirius. He had been excluded from his family because he was good and his family wasn't. And that wasn't acceptable to his parents. He hated his family because of it. He wondered if he wanted that for his own family. He didn't want any of his children hating either him or April because they weren't around enough, or because they weren't living together. It had hit Sirius hard tonight that he really really loved April, he really really needed her and he was trying to trick himself into thinking he could live without her.

"I'm fine." April said quietly. "Um, I'm going home." She said. She went for the door.

"April." Sirius said. He blocked the door.

"What is it Sirius?" April asked, she wasn't meeting his gaze. Sirius made April look at him straight in the eyes.

"I'm sorry for everything I've ever done to hurt you." Sirius said. He could see tears in April's eyes, at first Sirius thought that April was upset but she couldn't be, she was smiling.

"So am I Sirius." She said. "I'll see you tomorrow." She said. She licked her lips uncertainly and let out a shaky breath. She gave Sirius a quick kiss on the lips before opening the door behind Sirius and leaving the house.

As she walked home she put a hand to her lips and grinned. She couldn't believe that she'd just kissed Sirius. This whole divorce thing was stupid. She didn't want to be angry at Sirius anymore, she didn't want to sleep on her own, she wanted Sirius next to her. Dumbledore had the most amazing matchmaking skills. If you could even call it that. He was able to make people think. The smile disappeared from April's face.

"Dammit!" She muttered to herself. Sirius had already filed the divorce, he had told her, she was officially a Marsden again, she was no longer a Black. April gave a heavy sigh. She came to her door and put the key in it. She opened the door and stepped in. She closed the door and was about to take her cloak off when she stopped. Sirius was standing in front of her with an envelope.

"Sirius?" April asked hesitantly. Sirius looked at the envelope in his hands.

"Um, April." He said almost nervously. "Do you still want to...I mean to say...do you really want to break up with me?" He asked nervously. April shook her head.

"No." She breathed. Sirius looked at April with a smile. His smile grew into an even wider grin and he held up the envelope.

"Would you like to do the honours?" He asked, handing the envelope to April.

"What is it?" April asked.

"The divorce papers." Sirius said. April smiled and took the papers. She was tired so she had to use a bit more energy then usual to tear through the envelope. Sirius grinned and April let the pieces drop to the floor.

"I guess that means we're both ok?" April asked, looking at Sirius. He grinned and pulled April in to a fierce yet passionate kiss. April returned it just as hungrily as Sirius pushed her up against the door. April pulled away for a moment.

"Bedroom" She managed to say as Sirius kissed her throat. Sirius murmured some sort of reply. April closer her eyes and realised it would be hopeless to get to their bedroom. Instead Sirius pushed her into the living room and they fell onto the sofa. April's last thought before she lost her mind that night was 'why do Sirius and I always make up on the sofa?'

* * *

James and Lily sat against the single beech tree that over looked the Hogwarts lake. They didn't want to leave the castle. It gave them both a strange warm feeling inside. Over the duration of the night Lily had run over as many things as she could remember from her years at Hogwarts. From everything she had learnt to every happy and sad memory. James pulled her closer to him and pressed his face against her head. Lily smiled to herself and put her head on his shoulder. Dumbledore had said they were always welcome in the castle. James and Lily felt like taking advantage of that invitation tonight. The castle was an inky black outline against the midnight purples and blues of the sky. The moon was a half moon and a few lights came from the castle. Not many, mainly from the Ravenclaw and Gryffindor Towers.

Lily let out a sweet and gentle smile that James didn't see and pressed herself closer to James. He grinned and pulled his cloak around her. Lily regretted not getting together with James earlier then they did. Hogwarts was perfectly romantic and it would have been nice to be with James earlier in their seventh year or even in their sixth year.

"Lily." James said gently.

"Hmm." Lily answered.

"You know all that land behind the house." James said. He didn't phrase it as a question.

"Hmm." Lily answered.

"Well, um...I bought it all." James said uncertainly and slightly nervous. He wasn't sure about what Lily would say.

"Ok-what?" Lily turned to look at James. "How much land exactly?" Lily looked at James enquiringly. He frowned and shifted slightly.

"Um, you know the hills that surround the lake and then they go around towards Sirius' road?" Lily nodded, "Well, it's all ours." He said. Lily looked at him sceptically.

"How much did it cost James?" Lily asked. James shrugged nonchalantly.

"Not much." He said. Lily gave him a stern look. "About the same as the house." He said. Lily gave him a rather surprised look.

"Really?" She asked. "So that lake is ours?" a small smile was playing on her face. James grinned and nodded. Lily smiled and settled back in James' arms. "I suppose that's ok." She said.

"Just because we now own a lake?" James asked. Lily nodded.

"You should know me, James. I like the lake." Lily said. James laughed slightly. Lily felt comforted as she felt the rumbling of his laughter through his body. James looked at his watch.

"I suppose we should be getting home. You know Sirius and April probably killed each other before they even got home." James said. Lily sighed.

"Yeah I suppose. Come on." Lily said. She leant forward and let James stand up. She then held her arms up. "Pick me up husband!" She said. James rolled his eyes and pulled Lily to her feet. He put an arm around her waist and gave her a quick kiss.

"We should have done this more often." James said

"Well, you were an arrogant big headed, ego driven-" Lily started laughing as James put a hand over her mouth.

"I think we all know what I was." James said. Lily grinned and pulled James' arm away.

"Now give me a kiss then you can buy me a drink at the Three Broomsticks." Lily said with a slight pout.

* * *

James hummed as he walked to April's house the next morning. It was a bright sunny and clear day but very cold. There was a thin layer of frost on the floor, James was slightly surprised that it hadn't snowed. He had a broom stick slung over his shoulder. Rhia and Emma were chatting behind him and Orion was jumping up and down. Emma and Rhia had literally forced him into a seat that morning and made him watch Winnie the Pooh. Now he thought he was Roo, the baby kangaroo.

"Wondaful fing bout tiggahs." Orion sang as he hopped around.

"Good morning James." Said a man coming out of a small newsagent.

"Good morning Lawson." James said. Lawson Banks was Kara Banks' dad. The bright young girl was holding a bag of sweets and grinned when she saw Emma and Rhia. Lawson was about the same height as James, he had fair hair like Kara did but his eyes were a darker blue. He had a good humoured smile.

"How are you today?" James asked.

"Very good." He said. He looked at James' broom. "Um, why do you have a broom on you shoulder?" He asked. James swung his broom off his shoulder.

"What this?" James asked. "It's a Clean sweep one hundred. Quite an old model. I'm giving it to April, because she knows someone who wants it" James said with a smile. Lawson laughed heartily and shook his head.

"James, you are weird sometimes. It's just a broom." He said. James looked at Lawson confused for a moment before he remembered that Lawson was a Muggle. James grinned.

"Well, you know me." James said with a shrug. "Come children." James said swinging the broom on his shoulder and started whistling.

"Daddy!" Emma said. James turned on his heel and looked at Emma. He was so full of energy this morning.

"Yes daughter." James said.

"Can Rhia and I play with Kara?" She asked.

"Please uncle James." Rhia said with her hands behind her back. James looked at Lawson.

"I don't mind. We haven't got anything to do today." James nodded.

"Ok, Emma you can go. Rhia, you have to go home to talk to your mummy, afterwards you can go play." James said. Rhia grinned and Emma jumped up with happiness. Emma and Kara said bye to Rhia before running off towards Kara's house. Lawson said bye to James, leaving him to lead Rhia and Orion home.

"Now children. You will not eat sugar, you will not hit people with your lightsaber, Orion!" James said pointedly to Orion. Orion gave him an innocent look. "And Rhia, be nice to your mummy." James said. Rhia nodded.

"I want to live with Daddy." Rhia said.

"I know you do, that's why you have to be nice to your mummy." James said, letting April hold his hand. James knocked on April's door and waited for a moment. When no one answered James glanced around and got out his wand.

"Alohamora." He whispered. The door opened slowly and James went in. Orion ran up the stairs to his room to retrieve his lightsaber. Rhia went to the kitchen and got down a coat. She had been wanting to go and visit her pony all morning but now she wanted to go to Kara's. Sirius should have never bought her that stupid pony. It currently lived in paddock near the Potter's Lake. James called April's name and heard a tired reply from the living room.

"Great, she crashed out in the living room instead of the bedroom." James said to himself. He put the broom against the stair banister and pushed the living room door open. "April I have your – AAAAHHH!!!" James quickly ran from the room and closed the door. That was too much. What he'd just seen. No...April was very pretty but he felt seeing her and Sirius...naked...on the sofa...

James shook his head to clear it. No, he had to forget it. He shivered, he was scarred for life. The door opened and Sirius emerged from the room with his boxers now on. James looked at him with slight shock

"Nice to see you have something on. You've shown me way too much." James said. Sirius grinned widely.

"It's payback my friend. The number of times I've caught you and Lily at it." Sirius said tutting. "And I never complained."

"Yeah, but you think Lily is fit!"

"What and you don't think April is fit?"

"No! She's like my freakin' sister!" James said wildly. April emerged, fully clothed.

"Nice to know that. Shit James! Would it have hurt to knock?" April asked.

"Would it hurt for you to fuck in your own bedroom?" James asked. "God, the living room is public domain. I'm never going in there again!" Then suddenly it dawned on James what was weird about this situation. "Oh Merlin, you two just...but aren't you divorced?" James asked. April grinned and Sirius pulled her closer.

"Nope, not any more." Sirius said. James shivered as he got a sudden mental image of Sirius and April.

"I'm going home." He said. He apparated home and sat on his living room sofa. Harry was looking at him curiously. Ron was here as well and the young red haired boy glanced at Harry.

"Um, Dad, you're sitting on our cake." Harry said. James stood up and looked at the sofa, and there, where he had sat, was a flattened cake. James shivered again and left the room.

"Lily." James said. Lily came down the stairs, half dressed in her healer's uniform. It was a Sunday but she'd been called in for an emergency.

"What is it? James what's wrong?" Lily asked.

"I...April...Sirius...urgh..." James said shivering. Lily had finished doing up her uniform and held James hand, trying to be serious.

"What?" Lily asked.

"April, Sirius, on sofa...fucked...urgh..." James said closing his eyes and shaking. Lily tried to contain her laughter.

"Ok." Lily said with a smirk. James looked at her.

"It's not funny. They were....naked, on their sofa...It's very disturbing." James said. Lily hugged him and gave him a kiss.

"Aw, baby, it's fine. Now will you be ok to look after Ron and Harry and E...where's Emma?"

"At Kara's." James said. "And I'll be ok as long as I don't have to see April and Sirius naked again." Lily bit her lip to stop herself from laughing.

"Alright darling, see you later." Lily said.

* * *

**2 months later....in otherwords December 1986**

Emma, Rhia and Orion sat on the floor with Kaylee and Jessie between them. Emma and Bo's parents had finally agreed to let Rhia's parents have their children back, even though Rhia's parents still weren't actually living together.

"Ready?" Orion asked.

"Ready." Emma and Rhia replied. Orion handed Emma and Rhia two sugar cubes each.

"Kaylee, Jessie." Rhia said. "Come here." Jessie crawled over to Rhia and sat between Rhia's splayed out legs.

"Eee-a" Jessie murmured.

"Kaylee." Emma said. Kaylee crawled over to Emma and sat down. "Here, look, sweetie." She said holding the sugar cubes out on the palm of her hand. Rhia did the same to Jessie. Jessie and Kaylee looked at each other and then they both picked up the sugar cubes. They weren't allowed to eat sweeties. They both started sucking on the sugar cubes and soon they were gone. Emma, Rhia and Orion sat patiently watching the twins. They had been told that they weren't allowed to have sugar, none of their parents said that Jessie and Kaylee couldn't have sugar.

Ten minutes later and the three older children were rolling around on the floor laughing. The twins had some very strange reaction to the sugar and were zooming around the Black's living room at high speed. They collided with everything then seemed to bounce back and go in a different direction. At the moment Kaylee had her head against the wall and was trying to crawl through it. Jessie was going across the room faster then any of the older children could run. The door opened and Jessie went zooming under Sirius' legs. He turned quickly and picked up the speeding girl.

"Whoa, what's happened to you?" Sirius asked. He glanced around the room. Orion, Rhia and Emma were all now crying with laughter and Kaylee had decided to stop and rub her head. She pouted angrily and looked at her older brother and sister.

"Sirius, are they in there?" Came Lily's voice.

"Mummy." Emma said brightly.

"Yes they are." Sirius looked at the three older children.

"What did you do?" Sirius asked as Jessie kept trying to crawl, even in Sirius' arms

"Give Kay and Jess sweeties." Orion said with a wide grin.

"What?" Sirius asked. "Why?" Sirius put Jessie on the sofa and tried to keep her put but she kept sliding from Sirius' grip and rolling onto the floor, causing the three older children to break out laughing again.

"April, James help me with Jessie." Sirius said.

"Wow! You can tell the difference?" April asked sarcastically as she came into the room. Kaylee went over to Rhia and sat in front of her. Rhia managed to compose herself slightly and put her arms around her sister like she was a teddy bear.

"What happened?" James asked. She was holding an instrument case in her hand. Rhia and Emma looked at each other curiously.

"Orion, Rhia and Emma fed them sweets." Sirius said. Jessie was beginning to calm down but she still seemed a bit fidgety.

"What's that?" Emma asked, pointing at the instrument case that James held. James smiled.

"It's an early Christmas present." James said.

"Christmas is next week though." Rhia said, looking at James.

"I know" James said.

"We also have an early present for you as well Rhia." April said. Rhia and Emma looked at each other with grins. They stood up and went to their parents.

"Give us presents." Rhia said, none too politely. April turned to Sirius with a smile and gave him a helpless look.

"Sirius." She said sweetly.

"Use your wand." Sirius said. April rolled her eyes and left the room. She returned with a long flat box, that also looked a bit like a case and a strange X shaped metal thing.

"Emma, this is yours." James said, "And Rhia, that long flat one is yours." Rhia and Emma went to their respective presents. Emma sat down and James sat next to her curiously and tried to open the case. James helped her and Emma grinned when she saw a small guitar lying proudly in the black case. She turned to James who gave her a smile.

"A guitar?" Emma asked. James nodded.

"Apparently, you've been naughty in school and the teachers think you should learn to play" Emma stood up and hugged James tightly while Rhia gave a happy squeal.

"PIANO!!" She screamed.

"No, a keyboard. Pianos are way too expensive." April said. Rhia jumped around the room happily.

"A PIANO!! A PIANO!!" She shouted.

"You think we did good?" Sirius asked a few minutes later as Rhia tried to drag the piano out of the case, without much success and Emma was sitting plucking the strings of her guitar.

"Yeah I think we did." James said.

"Me want sumfink." Orion said. April motioned Orion over as Kaylee and Jessie joined Rhia in admiring the keyboard.

"What do you want?" April asked. Orion grinned.

"Drums!" He said.

"YEAH!" Sirius said. April gave Sirius a look and Sirius grinned, "In a few years time Orion." He said.

"Ok." Orion said with a grin. He went to Emma and looked at the guitar.

"Play like this." Emma said. She tried to put the guitar on her lap but couldn't get it right, so she gave up and lay it on the floor and plucked the strings. James grinned and Emma laughed. She turned around and gave her dad a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you daddy."

* * *

Harry flew through the air on his broom. James was trying desperately to catch up but Harry was too fast.

"Come here you brat!" James said as he made his broom speed up. Harry laughed and as James reached out to grab him Harry pulled his broom up and did a roll so that he was now behind James. James turned and gave Harry an annoyed look.

"You should have never taught him to fly." Said Sirius as he flew by them. They were flying over the lake and they could see Rhia climbing onto her horse, which she'd called Pegasus. Harry looked down and smiled and manoeuvred his broom around and flew down towards Rhia. He'd got the hang of riding a broom very quickly. Rhia patted Pegusus' neck as he trotted around the paddock.

"Hello." Harry said, flying slowly next to Rhia.

"Hello." Rhia said with a grin.

"Can Pegasus actually fly?" Harry asked.

"Yeah!" Rhia said, looking annoyed that Harry would even think that.

"Show me then." Harry said. Rhia kicked Pegasus, like her mum had taught her to do and clicked her tongue. Pegasus started going faster then suddenly his wings unfurled and he began to beat them up and down. Rhia's eyes widened in alarm and she flattened herself against Pegasus' back and wrapped her arms around Pegasus' neck. No one had gotten a bridle or saddle for the winged horse because no one knew how to put it on, because where the saddle should go, the wings were. The bridle, no one bothered about because Pegasus seemed happy to let Rhia hold his mane. Rhia closed her eyes tightly as the magnificent white winged horse lifted off the ground. He flapped a wing and threw Harry off course slightly. When Harry righted himself Rhia was looking down uncertainly. Sirius and James were looking at themselves rather amused by the horse and it's owner looking terrified and slightly small on it. Yes, the horse was a little big for Rhia, but Sirius' theory had been that Rhia will grow, and the horse was still very very young so he should stay alive for a long time.

"Go Rhia!" Harry said, he punched the air, like he'd seen the pictures of quidditch players do. He lost his balance slightly and fell sideways. He rolled under the broom and back up again. "Whoa!" He said, feeling slightly dizzy. Rhia turned to look at Harry and Harry grinned at her. Rhia smiled as well and straightened herself on the horse's back.

* * *

**A/N:-and thus starts a lovely relationship between Harry and Rhia....pfft, yeah, whatever! This story is going how I want it. ME I TELL YOU!! sorry if any of you were disappointed by that conclusoin and rather anti-climactic conclusion of April and SIrius' relationship. I was getting rather sick of it. But, they're still not living together..hmm.....I wonder why.....don't ask me, i don't know. And Pegasus...ah lovely pegasus....guess where he's from..:P Anyway, I LOVE you all, as soon as i finished the next 2 chapters I'll put the next chappie up. I decided tht i always have to be at least 1 chapter ahead of what i post......till next time**


	21. Double Trouble

**Double Trouble **

**Harry is 9**

"Harry, you go around those trees. Bo, you're on shed watch. April, you stay at the doors. Emma, Rhia, Kara...you're the watchers, you see either of them you shout then you chase. Orion, you and your BMX. You're the cowboy." Sirius said. Orion grinned and pulled his helmet on his head. "Lily, you hold those ropes ready, James, you and I are gonna help Orion." Sirius said. Everyone nodded and spread out through Sirius' Garden. "Jenny, you get the bath ready, Remus...you use that wand of yours if you need to, you try catch them and give them to Lily." Orion placed himself on his BMX. This was war. Bo and Harry had disappeared. Lily and Remus were ready. April was standing by the doors and locked them once Jenny had gone into the house.

"Good luck." Jenny whispered. Kara, Emma and Rhia spread themselves out in the garden.

"Go." Sirius said in a whisper. They all started searching for the people they were looking for. They searched the garden fruitlessly. Meanwhile, in two large trees at the bottom of the garden, Jessie and Kaylee clung to the trunks of the trees and sat on some branches watching the adults and their friends with interest. Jessie looked over to Kaylee and they grinned. Unknown to the adults, they could reach each other's minds. Jessie could read everyone's minds but Kaylee could only read Jessie's mind. Jessie was silent, Kaylee was loud. Jessie was the angel of the twins, Kaylee was the devil. Together they were the children from Hell. And they were only three, going on four.

"Make them pay." Kaylee said. Jessie grinned and gave her a thumbs up. They were quite advanced for children their age, simply because of the number of older people they had a tendency to stay with. The adults were like big children. Their older bother and sister and their friends were hyperactive and never seemed to calm down. Bo and Harry were clever and were relatively normal. Jessie held onto a branch above her and pulled herself up. Kaylee watched and put a hand in the bag she had on her back. They had snuck into Orion's room earlier and stolen a few of the things he'd been preparing for practical jokes on Harry's ninth birthday. Come Harry's birthday, everything was gone and no one could find anything. Kaylee and Jessie had hidden them in the trees. Rhia, Emma and Orion had tried to get up these trees so many times but they were too heavy and too big to climb them and they weren't allowed to use brooms or ride Pegasus. Kaylee held a water balloon filled with some mushy doughy stuff that Orion had invented. Kaylee watched below her and slowly began to climb down. She was as silent as a cat and as agile as a monkey.

"Where the hell are they?" James muttered below her. Kaylee hooked her legs around a branch and hung just above James. She raised her hands and then threw the balloon at Uncle James. "AH!" He shouted. He looked up as Kaylee dropped onto James. James fell to his knees and Kaylee ran into the garden.

"KAYLEE ALERT!" Shouted Kara as a dung bomb hit her

"Jessie is free!" Emma shouted. Jessie looked across the garden at Kaylee. _Hide in the bushes._ Jessie grinned and dived into the nearest bushes.

"AH!" She hissed. She looked at her hand as a bead of blood formed on it. She looked around, the rose bush! Great! She saw Orion cycle past then skid to a stop.

"Jessie." He said in a high voice. "Come out wherever you are." Jessie grinned and crawled underneath the rose bush and got a tube of glue out of her pockets. Orion had both his feet on the grass and was looking around. Jessie glanced around quickly before poking out of the bush and quickly squeezing out all of the glue onto the pedals of his bike. She threw the tube away. She knew it was strong glue. Aunt Lily used it when she was too lazy to get her wand from her bedroom.

There was a rustle and Kaylee appeared next to Jessie. Jessie looked at Kaylee.

"Orion?" She breathed. Jessie nodded, "Sister next." Kaylee asked. Jessie nodded. Kaylee grinned and gave Jessie a few sugar cubes. Everyone knew that when Jessie had sugar she was too fast to catch. Jessie ate a few and sucked on one as she felt her energy build up. Soon she shot out of the bush.

"Got ya!" Orion said. He began pedalling on his BMX bike frantically, trying to catch up with Jessie. Jessie caught a one of the legs of their swings, turned and ran straight for Rhia and Emma.

"Got you!" Emma said lunging to get Jessie. Jessie slid under Emma's legs and into another bush.

"Oh-" Rhia turned. Orion put on the brakes of his bike and tried to take his feet off the pedals.

"OH SHIT!" Orion shouted as he crashed into Emma and Rhia. They fell in a pile, all stuck under Orion's bike.

"Orion!" April snapped at her son. "No swearing!" She said walking towards the children

"Three down!" Harry called with a laugh. Kaylee's eyes narrowed and she looked at Lily, who was idly swinging the rope around. Kaylee ran out and grabbed one end of the rope and started running down the garden with it. Lily got her wits in time and pulled on the rope, jerking Kaylee backwards. Kaylee fell over and Remus pounced on her and held her around the stomach with his arms.

"Got One!!" He said as Kaylee struggled.

"Let go!" She screamed, "LET GO!! NO BATH!!" April hurried over and took Kaylee off of Remus.

"Open the door." April said. Remus unlocked one of the doors and April ran in with Kaylee and ran straight to the bathroom where Jenny was ready with a bath.

"Ok, one down, on more to go." Remus muttered to Lily.

"They're exactly like Sirius." Lily muttered back. Remus grinned as a waist high girl zoomed past them. Lily whipped out her wand.

"Petrificus Totallus!" She said. The spell hit the young girl. Jessie's eyes widened as she fell to the floor, unable to move.

"Coool" Kara said with a grin.

"Uh oh." Lily muttered, the worst thing about Kara was that she was a muggle. "Remember what I said about when you see strange things Kara?" Lily asked. Kara nodded.

"Don't tell and one day I can do it." Kara said.

"Well done. JAMES! SIRIUS! GOT THEM!" Lily said.

"Mum! Help me!" Emma shouted. "Orion get off!"

"My feet are stuck!" Orion said. He slipped his feet out his shoes and tripped over Rhia's head

"Orion!" Rhia snapped.

"Sorry." Orion said. He pulled his bike free with difficulty. Sirius came over and helped Orion. Rhia and Emma got to their feet looking rather annoyed. Sirius and James looked at Orion's bike.

"Well this is new." James said with a laugh. Orion's shoes were hanging on the pedals and were stuck there. Orion frowned and turned to look at Jessie, who was being lifted and taken into the house by Harry and Bo.

"Come on. Lets take her up." Bo said. Harry smirked at Jessie.

"Good run." He said to Jessie. Jessie would have smiled but she was frozen in her position. Harry and Bo clambered through the house.

"Mum!" Bo shouted.

"Upstairs...KAYLEE!" Jenny shouted. They heard Kaylee laughing, almost manically.

"Aunt April, we have Jessie." Harry shouted. April came onto the landing and took Jessie. She freed her from the confines of body bind spell. Jessie gave April an innocent look.

"Room, now!" April said.

* * *

Harry sat in the living room trying to read the latest copy of Quidditch today but he decided to listen to his parents instead. They were talking to Bo's parents and Rhia's parents.

"I think we should all go to the beach." Lily said, "I haven't been on holiday for a while."

"That's because you're always working." Sirius said as he put an arm around April's shoulders.

"Well I have three weeks of holiday." Lily said leaning back in the chair. Harry sat up and looked at Lily happily.

"You do?" Harry asked. Lily nodded with a smile.

"And I have a few weeks holiday soon." James said with a frown, "Come to think of it." Emma looked at her dad.

"How do you forget holidays?" Emma asked. James grinned and shrugged.

"They're not as important anymore." James said. Emma looked at her dad sceptically.

"Anyway, Beach. Who's up for it?" Lily asked.

"Cho is arriving tomorrow" Jenny said. "She's coming to live with us."

"Oh, why?" Sirius asked.

"She is?" Remus asked.

"Yeah, because she wants to go to Hogwarts. So she's living with us for a year" Jenny said.

"Can she even go to Hogwarts? She's Chinese!" April said.

"Well, the Chinese school is full and Dumbledore said it would be an honour to have a Chang in the school again." Jenny said with a grin.

"Can she even speak English?" Sirius asked. April hit Sirius lightly.

"Of course she can speak English. She's very fluent in it." April said.

"How do you know?" Sirius asked, looking at April suspiciously.

"I've been over to China a few times to talk to the Chinese ministry, and I drop by the Chang estate. I see no harm in visiting them."

"And Zhao and his family do come over to England every year." James added. Sirius scowled at them for being caught out.

"Well I don't see why Cho can't come as well." Lily said with a smile. "I haven't seen her since she was seven." Bo grinned at the thought of his cousin coming to stay. They always had a lot of fun together.

"Who's Cho?" Kara asked Rhia and Emma quietly.

"Bo's cousin." Rhia said. "She's strange."

"She looks funny as well. Like Aunty Jenny." Emma said.

"Emma!" Lily snapped at Emma's remark. Emma turned to look at Lily.

"Yes." Emma said. She didn't think she'd done anything wrong. Lily was about to say something when there was a large crash from above them.

"Damn." Sirius muttered.

"Those twins." April said tiredly as the two got up and went up the stairs and entered the twin's room. It was a total mess, the twins weren't there and April was so tempted to scream.

"Kaylee, Jessie" April called. The two twins ran into the bedroom. April stood with her hands on her hips, Sirius was with her looking quite annoyed.

"Uh oh." Kaylee said.

"What happened to your room?" April asked.

"Orion wrecked it." Kaylee said. Jessie nodded.

"Kaylee!" Sirius said, "Tell us the truth."

"He did!" Jessie said, Sirius looked at Jessie slightly confused. "Orion wreck the bedroom, thought it be funny!"

"But Orion is downstairs, he can't have done it Jessie." April said.

"I'm Jessie." Kaylee said. April and Sirius looked at her.

"No you're not." April said.

"Yes, me Kaylee" Jessie said.

"Enough you two, what happened to your room?" Sirius said.

"Orion wrecked it." Jessie said. Kaylee nodded.

"Jes- I mean Kaylee stop lying to us." Sirius said. "Orion is downstairs playing in the garden and your room wasn't like this earlier!"

"Ok, ok" Jessie said rolling her eyes. "It was Rhia."

"Kaylee!" April said.

"Jessie actually." Jessie said. April gave the twins a stern look.

"Jessie's the silent one isn't she?" Sirius asked. April nodded. Sirius turned to Kaylee. "Ok, Jessie, what really happened?"

"I'm Jessie!" Jessie said.

"You talk to much to be Jessie." Sirius said. Jessie crossed her arms.

"Maybe she's telling the truth." April said. She bent over slightly and looked into Jessie's eyes. "Yep this one is Jessie." April said pointing at Jessie.

"Stop using magic, mum!" Kaylee said. "You should know without magic!" April closed her eyes in frustration. Sirius turned to April so that his back was towards Kaylee and Jessie. They quickly swapped places and switched expressions.

"Ok, Jessie, Kaylee." April said. "For the last time, what happened to your room?"

"Rhia and Emma set off some fireworks" Kaylee said.

"I don't think they did Jessie, I don't see any burn marks."

"I'm Jessie, mum." Jessie said.

"And I'm Kaylee." Kaylee said. April and Sirius looked at them confused.

"No, you're Jessie." Sirius said pointing to Kaylee. "Aren't you?" Kaylee and Jessie shook their heads in disapproval.

"And you call yourselves our parents!" Rhia said from the doorway. She was laughing with Emma and Kara. They had come up to see what had happened.

"Kaylee, Jessie." The twins shook their heads. "Jessie and Kaylee." They nodded their heads. "You two are grounded."

"Why?" Kaylee said innocently.

"What have we told you about confusing your parents?" Sirius asked them. "Every time you confuse us or your teachers you will be grounded for a week."

"NO!" The twins shouted together.

"Yes!" April and Sirius said.

* * *

Kaylee and Jessie's grounding didn't last long as they went to the beach with the others a few days later. Harry held a football in his hands and tossed it in the air. He felt a bit weird, as did his sister and Rhia, when Cho was around. They liked her but it was weird, her coming on a trip like this when usually it was usually just the three families. Also, it meant that Harry had to talk to his sister and her friends or to Orion. Whenever Cho was here she and Bo spent ages talking, and in Chinese! Why did they talk in a language Harry couldn't understand!? Harry adjusted his new glasses on his face and looked over to where Orion was struggling with Emma. They were fighting over who should be buried. Kaylee and Jessie were building a sand castle. Bo and Cho...well Harry didn't really know what they were talking about, which left him with Rhia. He liked Rhia and there was nothing wrong with her but...she just wasn't a boy, or Harry's age.

"I'm bored" Rhia said as she dug her toes into the sand. Their parents were laughing and talking up on the beach behind them.

"Same, do you want to play football?" Harry asked.

"Can't play football." Rhia said, "I hurt my leg last time." She said.

"Well this will be different, we're on sand, not concrete like at school." He said as he put a hand into the sand. Rhia went slightly red.

"Um..." She said for a moment then nodded with a slight smile. "Ok." Harry grinned.

"Cool" He stood up and pulled Rhia after him. They wondered off for a little bit to find somewhere flat to kick the ball around in. Harry would have preferred to play quidditch against Rhia. Sometimes she played against him while he was on his broom and she was on Pegasus, that always made for an interesting match. But most of the time Pegasus stayed in the paddock and watched while Rhia and Harry fought over the quaffle, in the air, high above the Potter lake, as it was now called. Harry kicked the ball, he loved football but it was sooo boring sometimes. He bounced it from one foot to the other then passed it to Rhia. Rhia tried to copy Harry but ended up falling over while laughing. Harry laughed as well and ran after the ball as it went to the water. Rhia followed him, not wanting to get lost on the busy beach. They went to the water and Harry jumped for the ball and missed as a wave took it back up the beach towards Rhia. Harry plunged into the cold water and let out a yelp of surprise and shock. Rhia started laughing as she picked up the ball.

"It's cold!" Harry said. Rhia laughed.

"Scardy cat!" Rhia said. Harry looked at Rhia and smiled evilly. Rhia's eyebrows rose slightly, she'd seen that look on Orion. Harry suddenly started splashing her. Rhia screamed and kicked the water back at Harry. What followed was a water fight in the sea that involved several children that they didn't know. Rhia turned at one point and saw a fairly large, fat boy bending over to pick up Harry's football. Rhia tensed and ran out of the water to pick it up.

"My ball!" The fat boy said and pushed Rhia down into the sand. Harry saw this and ran up to Rhia to make sure she was ok. The fat boy had blonde curls and was fatter then any boy that Harry had ever seen before.

"That's my football, and say sorry to my friend." Harry said.

"No!" The boy said, "And it's my ball now. Finders keepers." He said. Harry felt anger rising inside of him.

"No, give me my ball please." Harry said holding his hands out and taking a step towards the boy though he really didn't want to. The boy pushed him away and Harry stumbled back. Rhia crossed her arms.

"Don't hurt Harry you pig!" Rhia said loudly. The boy didn't seem to like this. He approached Rhia and dropped the ball. His hands clenched into fists. Harry, noticing this put himself between Rhia and the boy. Rhia held onto the back of Harry's wet shirt uncertainly.

"You know, you're not a nice boy at all." Harry said.

"Mum says I'm the best boy ever and that all other boys aren't nice." The boy said angrily. Despite being fat and wobbling at every step Harry took a step back nervously. This boy was really scary. Harry ducked a blow from the fat boy.

"Ah!" Rhia let out a short scream. Harry wanted to run away from this boy but the fat boy lunged forwards and grabbed Harry by the front of his wet shirt. Harry closed his eyes ready for a punch. He'd never been in a fight but he knew what to expect.

"Harry!" Lily shouted as she ran to him. At the same time came another voice

"Dudley! What have I told you about fighting?" Came another woman's voice. "I know you like to fight but not on the beach Duddy." A thin woman with brown hair and a long face pulled Dudley away from Harry. Harry was released and he stumbled into Lily. Rhia held onto his arm worriedly.

"Petunia!" Lily asked. The woman. The woman looked up at being addressed to. As soon as she saw Lily she sneered.

"Oh, it's you freak." She said coldly.

"What...how...why are you here?" Lily asked. Harry hurried to pick up the football and held it tightly and protectively.

"It is possible for us _normal_ people to have a holiday you know." Petunia sneered, she put an arm around the fat boy, apparently named Dudley. Harry really hated him already and they hadn't even met. He never wanted to see that boy again. How did his mum know Dudley's mum.

"I am normal but in a different way" Lily said tiredly. "How have you been?" She asked with a very slight, forced smile.

"Like you're interested anyway." Petunia sneered.

"We haven't seen each other since mum and dad's funeral, of course I'm interested." Lily said. Harry nodded as he figured that they were sisters, if they were sisters why hadn't Harry met this woman before?

"Well, I was great, until I saw you. Actually it's a good job we bumped into each other, as much as I hate to admit it." Petunia said.

"What? Why?" Lily asked suspiciously, "What do you want?" Lily pulled Rhia to her protectively and made sure Harry was close to her.

"You're going to look after Dudley for two weeks." Petunia said. Lily coughed in shock and looked at Petunia.

"WHAT!" Lily nearly shouted.

"Sh, mum." Harry said. Lily glanced at Harry then looked back at Petunia.

"No! I'm not looking after that lump of fat." Lily said, nodding to Dudley. Petunia puffed up slightly and was joined by a thick set man with a thick neck and a bristle like moustache.

"Anything wrong Pet?" He asked. "Ah, I see you found Dudders." He ruffled Dudley's blond curls and looked at Lily. "Oh, you. What are you doing here?"

"Family holiday." Lily said coldly. Harry and Rhia looked at Lily at that tone of voice. Was that really Lily? "And no, I'm not looking after your...Dudders" Lily said vehemently. "Why don't you get the poor babysitter that you usually use?"

"Dudley shot her with his BB gun." Petunia said, "So she refuses to look after him. So, I've been trying to get in contact with you to tell you you're looking after Dudley while Vernon and I go on a business trip to France" Petunia said. Lily glowered at her sister.

"Then why didn't you send me an owl?" Lily said with a sly smile on her face. Petunia went white while Vernon started turning a bright red. He was already red from the sun, so was Petunia. The differences between the sisters were remarkable. Lily was beautiful, had green eyes, lovely hair and nicely tanned skin, Petunia was ugly, thin, long faced and slightly sunburnt.

"Don't you dare mention your...freakiness in such a place like this!" Vernon hissed at her.

"You can't control me Vernon." Lily said coolly.

"Who are they?" Rhia whispered up to Lily.

"She's my evil sister." Lily said with a smirk. Rhia nodded and smiled at Petunia.

"I'm Rhia." She said, holding her hand out. Petunia looked at Rhia disdainfully like she was the scum of the earth.

"Freak, you are going to pick up Dudley at seven o'clock tomorrow and you will look after him without using any of that freaky stuff you do." Petunia said.

"And you will pick him up using the usual methods." Vernon said.

"You don't have a fireplace, how can I get Dudley home without using the Floo network?" Lily said innocently. Petunia looked like she wanted to slap Lily. Lily smirked at her expression.

"No Freaky stuff ok!" Petunia demanded. "Come on Dudley." She said, pulling the fat lump of a boy behind her. Vernon followed after giving Lily such a look of hate that if looks could kill, well, Lily wouldn't be alive. Lily simply sniffed absently and looked at Harry and Rhia with a smile.

"Come on you two, I came to see if you wanted Ice creams." Lily said. Harry and Rhia grinned.

"Chocolate!" They both said together.

"That's what I thought." Lily said with a laugh

* * *

"-And he was HUGE, like a big fat creature with legs!" Rhia said to Emma as they ate their ice creams. "And he tried to punch Harry but Harry was really brave and he tried to fight back and-" Rhia carried on with her account to Emma and Orion. Orion looking at her with awe. He turned to Harry as Rhia continued to talk.

"The force is strong with you." He said. Harry raised an eyebrow and patted his head. James looked at Lily curiously.

"A fat creature with legs?" James asked. Lily frowned helplessly.

"We've got to babysit my darling nephew." Lily said.

"Who?" James asked.

"Dudley, Petunia's son." Lily said.

"Petunia?" James asked slightly confused. "OH, her." He said, remembering who she was talking about. "Witch hater?"

"Oh, joy, you're going to have fun." Jenny said with a laugh, "Especially if her son is anything like Petunia."

"Merlin, I hate her." April mumbled. Everyone jumped, they'd all thought April had fallen asleep while sunbathing.

"Um, yeah, we all do." James said.

"Well we've never met her." Sirius said, "Me and Remus."

"Lucky you." April muttered, "She can't even get my name right. She calls me every month of the year except April, and no jokes Sirius." She said lifting a hand to point at Sirius before he could say anything. Sirius looked at her disappointedly.

"Mum." Emma said. Lily looked at Emma. "We have a cousin?" Lily nodded. "Is he nice?"

"No, he tried to kill me." Harry said with a scowl. He liked his hand as chocolate ice cream dripped down it.

"But you're ok." Rhia said with a smile. Harry smiled back and they both laughed. Lily and James both looked at April and Sirius. They had always suspected Harry and Rhia. They seemed very close a lot of the time, Rhia certainly preferred Harry's company after Kara and Emma. Harry was always quite protective over Rhia and Emma, but everyone expected it for Emma but not Rhia. Well, yes they were still very young, Rhia was only seven and Harry was nine, but that didn't seem to make much difference. Lily smiled at April, who grinned back. April let out a sigh and pulled on her sunglasses.

"Have fun with Petunia's family Lily." April said with a grin. Lily's frown returned and she seethed silently.

* * *

**A/N:-Ok, after such a sucessful double update...I'm only giving you one chapter, :P I can't keep writing as much as i do at the moment, cause i was 4 chapters ahead...now i'm only 1 chapter ahead...grr...I'm not updateing again until i have chapter 24 written....which'll be sometime tomorrow. Anyway, thank you all so much, you're all the most wonderfullest people on this earth. If i were a published author...I'd give you all a free copy of my book, but seeing as i'm not JKR or a published author i can't....watch the bookshelves for a book by Anna Sheldrick in the future :) Also, a slight confession....i've messed up all the ages. Before i started this story i had decided that...by this point Bo would be 10, HArry 9, Emma and rhia 7, Orion 6 and the twins are 4 but i've messed up the ages and Orion isn't yet 6 and the twins are 3...grumble...so in the 'Hogwarts' years when HArry's in hist 6th and 7th year, i'm changing the ages but i'll keep it as it is for now. grr...i hate this story sometimes!**


	22. The Cousin

**The cousin**

Lily stopped her car outside the neat little house. The garden was all trimmed and perfect and lovely and so Petunia! Lily shuddered, such tidiness should not be allowed. She was a fairly tidy person herself but not excessively tidy like her sister. Why was she doing this? Why was she looking after the son of the person she hated most in the world!

"Because she's your sister" Lily sighed to herself. She took out the keys and opened the door. She had travelled the five hours from her house and dreaded the five hours back. She would have preferred to apparate but as she had no way of getting Dudley back because he wasn't allowed to travel by Floo, portkey or any other way because he was a muggle, she had to use the car. She rarely used the car at all, probably only to drive around Godric's hollow, which had turned from a village into a small town. Lily got out of the car and swung the keys on her fingers as she went to the door. She knocked on the door and waited. She looked around. She saw the neighbour opposite glancing out of her window. Lily gave her a little wave and she disappeared.

"Nice little neighbourhood." Lily muttered to herself. She looked around again and saw a woman she'd seen a few times before. Mrs. Figg. Lovely little strange Mrs. Figg. The woman gave Lily a wave, which Lily returned. The door opened and Petunia threw a holdall into Lily. Lily stumbled back in surprise and held it.

"Remember, no funny stuff!" Petunia said. Lily rolled her eyes and went to her car and put the bag into the boot of the car. She was about to close it when Vernon gave Lily another larger suitcase. How much stuff did a nine year old need! Dudley waddled down towards the car reluctantly and wrenched open the car door so hard Lily winced. Her car! Dudley climbed in and the car dipped down at the front slightly. Lily slammed the boot shut and turned to come face to face with her sister.

"Remember, no funny stuff. You will do exactly as Dudley says, give him what he wants and not neglect Dudley in any way." Petunia said. Lily scowled slightly.

"And aren't you going to give me any money to pay for his upkeep at my house?" Lily asked.

"No, you're my sister, you should be willing to do this for free. If I hear any complaints from Dudley when he returns I'll never ever speak to you again." Petunia said.

"Oh, and that's a big loss." Lily said walking to the driver's door. She got out her wand and conjured some parchment with her home number on. Petunia stiffened slightly. "Here's my number." Lily said handing the parchment to Petunia. She still held her wand in her hand and Petunia eyed it suspiciously. Lily smirked and jerked it in Petunia's direction. Petunia jumped and Lily laughed. Petunia snatched the parchment from Lily's hand and went round to where Dudley was sitting. Vernon was obviously at work.

"You be a good boy ok, and if Aunt Freak is bad to you just phone mummy ok?" and so on and so on. Lily had started the engine and was on the verge of killing herself when Petunia finally shut the door. Lily pressed down on the accelerator and went down the road before Petunia could say anything.

"Music!" Dudley ordered. Lily glanced at Dudley and then put in a tape into the cassette player. It was some of the latest songs from the wizarding world that Lily had managed to transfer to tape.

"Different music, this music is rubbish." Dudley said. Lily stopped at a traffic light and looked at Dudley.

"Look Dudley. I'm your aunt and your mum left me in charge. While I look after you, you will do as I say ok? Because frankly I think you're no better then my sister." Lily said, "So you will listen to this music." Dudley looked at her blankly and Lily knew that he hadn't taken in anything that she'd just said. Lily tightened her grip on the steering wheel and shook slightly, this was going to be a long two weeks.

* * *

Emma and Harry were hunting in the kitchen for food. Their dad was out with Uncle Sirius to see Uncle Sirius' work. Their mum was upstairs putting a spare bed into Harry's room.

"Who's staying in your room?" Emma asked as Harry lifted her onto the kitchen work top.

"Our cousin." Harry said.

"We don't have a cousin." Emma said.

"We do" Harry said, Emma stood up on the worktop and opened up a cupboard. Baloo, her cat, jumped up onto the counter and followed Emma curiously.

"Go and find food Baloo" Emma said. Baloo mewed and prowled around the kitchen, looking into all the little boxes.

"I found biscuits!" Emma said. She picked up two packets of biscuits and a packet of crisps and threw them down to Harry. Harry caught them and put them in a plastic carrier bag.

"Anything else?" Harry asked. There was a sound of something being knocked over. Harry and Emma looked to see Baloo standing in the middle of split cereal from a box that he'd knocked over. Emma smiled and clicked her tongue and the cat returned to her. He managed to jump on top of the cupboards and watched Emma from above.

"Um, oh look," Emma said. She picked up a box of some red stuff. "Jelly cubes" She read off the label. She looked at Harry. He shrugged.

"Good enough." He held open the bag and Emma threw it down. "Get more crisps." He said. Emma nodded and took out a few more packets of crisps. She threw them at Harry, who picked them all up and then helped Emma to the floor. Emma looked in the bag and grinned.

"Come on, Simpsons is on soon." Harry said. Emma ran off into the living room, screamed and ran out. She clung to Harry.

"What?" Harry asked.

"There's something in there." Emma said. Harry pried off his sister and went to the door and peered in. Emma peered in as well. "Look, on the sofa!" Emma whispered, pointing to the sofa. Dudley sat on the sofa, stuffing his face with a packet of Malteasers. Baloo was hissing at him and looking rather alert.

"Oh, that's Dudley." Harry said. "Our fat cousin." He said. Emma held onto Harry's arm and braved a venture into the room. Dudley turned to look at them.

"Hi." Emma said fearfully. Dudley looked at her then turned back to the TV. Emma looked at Harry.

"Say hello!" Harry said, Dudley mumbled something. "Now, it's our turn to watch the telly, you've been watching it all day."

"No, the best show is on" Dudley said.

"But the Simpsons is on." Emma said with an angry frown. He bent over and picked up Baloo.

"So? I'm bigger then you." Dudley said, making Emma smirk and Harry laugh.

"Definitely." Harry said. Dudley looked at Harry sharply.

"I'm older then you as well, so I'm watching what I want, not you." Dudley said.

"It's my house!" Harry snapped at him.

"I'm your cousin." Dudley said. Harry snatched for the remote but Dudley snatched it away. Harry seethed and Emma looked at Dudley rather annoyed.

"The Simpsons is on" Harry said, "Now give me the remote!" Harry said. He snatched for the remote and received a hard fist in the side of the face. He fell backwards. Emma let out a scared shout and ran out of the room. Dudley stuck out his tongue and settled in his chair, happy with his victory. Harry shook his, he could see white dots floating around in front of his eyes, and his vision was funny, it wasn't as clear as usual. Lily came in followed by Emma.

"Harry!" Lily said shocked. She went to Harry and helped him up.

"He hit me!" Harry said pointing at Dudley. Dudley was ignoring them and laughing at the TV show. Lily's face was set with a hard expression. She went to the TV and pulled out the plug. Dudley let out a shout of annoyance.

"I was watching the TV!" Dudley said.

"I don't care Dudley." Lily said,

"I have to watch the TV! I'm missing the show!" Dudley said, he slid off the chair and went to Lily. Lily got out her wand. Yes, he was only nine but, god, did he already test her patience more then James ever had. Dudley stopped and laughed.

"Go outside and play Dudley," Lily said, "You to, Harry, Emma." Harry and Emma looked at her with annoyance and pleading.

"But the Simp-" Harry started.

"Outside!" Lily snapped. Harry and Emma picked up their bag of sweets and treats and dragged it outside, glaring at Dudley. Dudley stood defiantly in the living room. "Dudley!" Lily snapped. Dudley grumbled and went outside. He waddled over to where there was a wooden outdoor table with some wooden chairs that Harry and Emma were sitting on. Dudley squeezed himself into a chair muttering things like, "if mum was here" and "mum wouldn't treat me like this".

"You mum is an idiot then" Emma said after five minutes of his mumbling. Dudley glared at her. Emma shrank back slightly and looked at Harry. Harry ignored Dudley and continued his conversation with his sister about playing quidditch later with Bo, Cho, Ron and Rhia.

* * *

Harry and Emma sat outside grumbling. They weren't even allowed to play quidditch while Dudley was round. Their mum was being strange and their dad agreed. They were so annoying. Their friends were coming any minute and they couldn't play quidditch with them. Well, they could go to the lake, that would probably be where Emma and Rhia would go, to go and play with Pegasus. Bo and Cho came walking out of the house and ran over to the table that Harry and Emma were sitting at.

"Who's that boy?" Cho asked, "The one inside?"

"Oh, that's Dudley. My cousin." Harry mumbled.

"You have a cousin?" Bo asked. Harry nodded and sighed.

"So we can't play quidditch." Emma said "Because he's a muggle." She muttered angrily. "We can't watch TV, he hits Harry, he nearly hit me-" Bo and Cho looked at each other slightly worried.

"He doesn't sound nice." Cho said.

"He's not." Harry replied, "And he's fat!" Cho giggled and Bo smirked.

"Where's Ron and Rhia?" Bo asked.

"Here!" Ron said coming out of the house as well. Like Bo and Cho, he had a thin layer of soot covering him. "That boy isn't very nice is he? Oh, I had to bring Ginny, because she was complaining." He said nodding to the young red haired girl who was walking behind Ron. Harry didn't see Ginny often. He waved at her and Ginny waved back.

"So what are we doing?" Bo asked Harry.

"Lets go swimming." Emma said brightly.

"Where?" Ginny asked.

"At the lake" Emma said with a smile.

"But you can't swim." Ron said

"I can now." Emma said proudly. Ron nodded looking slightly impressed.

"Ok." Ron said.

"I'M HERE!" Rhia shouted as she came around the house. "Lets play quidditch." She said with a grin.

Bo didn't like the fact that Harry's cousin had to come with them. While they all had fun jumping around in the water of the lake he just sat there and grumbled at them. He really didn't seem to like the fact that there was a winged horse walking around. Every time Baloo went anywhere near him he tried to grab the cat's tail so Baloo tried to stay near Emma the whole time. When Emma was in the water the cat dipped a paw into the water before deciding that he didn't like water.

The children all splashed each other while James and Lily watched carefully. Lily sat on the fence of the paddock stroking Pegasus' neck.

"Are you sure it's ok to reveal Dudley to all this?" James asked.

"What? The magic?" Lily asked.

"No. Fun." James said. "I mean, I remember Petunia and Vernon..." James frowned, "They weren't any fun." James said. Lily grinned and put her arms around James' shoulders.

"I know, but might as well try and include Dudley, maybe we can change him." Lily said. James grinned and kissed Lily.

"I find that highly unlikely." He said against her lips. Lily closed her eyes and smiled. She kissed James as James put his arms around Lily. Then suddenly pulled her off the fence and held her in his arms. Lily jumped slightly and looked at James.

"What-" Lily started to say then realised where James was taking her. He was running to the small jetty that went into the lake. "James! Don't!" Lily shouted. The children turned to look to see what was happening. Lily tried to get out of James arms but he grinned and held her tightly so she couldn't get out of his arms.

"James!" Lily said, "Let me down." James grinned.

"THROW! THROW!" The children chanted from a little way off. They were laughing and grinning.

"Ok." He said. He threw Lily into the lake, but wasn't quick enough to get away so she pulled him in with her. The children all started laughing. Where Lily and James were was so deep they couldn't reach the floor. Lily came up and glared at James.

"You are so dead." Lily said. The water was cold compared to the air and Lily shivered slightly. James gave her a grin. His glasses were slipping off his face and his hair stuck to his head.

"You know you love me." James said. Lily rolled her eyes and swam to where the water was shallower. James followed and put his arms around Lily and stopped her from going much further.

"Let go of me James." Lily said trying to be angry but failing.

"No." James said with a grin. He pulled her closer and placed a kiss on her lips. Lilly smiled and closed her eyes. James kissed her again, a kiss that he returned.

"Aunt Lily! Uncle James! That's disgusting!" Bo shouted. James and Lily laughed and James gave Lily one last kiss before they put their heads together.

"Ok, you go around to the left, I'll go to the right, and we'll show the kids how to properly splash." James said with a grin. Lily laughed.

"Alright." She said. She kissed his cheek before swimming off to the left. She felt really heavy with all her clothes wet and slightly awkward, it was weird swimming in a skirt! Harry, Emma and their friends had gone back to splashing each other. James held up three fingers...two fingers...one finger. Lily and James got out their wands and used a spell that they knew to create rather large waves that covered the laughing and screaming children.

* * *

Dudley found this all rather boring. Who would want to play with water while there was a perfectly good TV in the house? Dudley just wanted to go in. His supposed Aunt was so horrible to him. Why wasn't he allowed to watch TV? And his cousins. They were weird, they were poofs. They were weak and boring. All they did was play with each other or play weird things around the house. Dudley hate it. He hated being outside. He hated that stupid cat that always hissed at him. Dudley hated animals, full stop! And that horse thing! That was not normal!

His relatives were really strange, they were weird, freaks. They did stuff with those thin wooden sticks. And making those weird waves! It was like Magic or something but his parents had always told him that there was no magic. There was no such thing. And why hadn't he heard of this aunt before? Aunt Marge was so much nicer then this aunt. Dudley sat and pulled up some grass and glaring at his cousins playing in the lake. He wanted to go home, play on his toys and his own friends. He wasn't in charge of everything here like he was at home. He heard something behind him and saw two young girls running around a hill, followed by a boy of about five.

"RHIA!!" Orion shouted. He seemed to bounce to the lake. Rhia turned and grinned as her younger brother went to the lake and jumped in.

"Orion!" April shouted but a bit to late. Orion emerged from the water with a grin and dripping wet. Lily and James laughed and turned to see April and Sirius.

"You care to join us?" James asked.

"Um, no it's fine." April said with an amused smile. Sirius grinned.

"Alright." Sirius said. He pulled off his shirt and ran to the lake and started wrestling James. To the children's amusement. Dudley watched with disdain, these people didn't know how to behave. The two girls approached Dudley curiously.

"No, he is a boy Jessie." Kaylee said. She looked at Jessie and Jessie gave her a who cares look. "We have to say hi." Jessie shook her head. Kaylee went up to Dudley.

"Hi." Said Kaylee, "Who are you?" Dudley looked at Kaylee with a look of disgust, he didn't like little children.

"Dudley." He said.

"I'm Kaylee and this is my sister Jessie." Kaylee said with a broad grin.

"I didn't ask for your name." Dudley sneered.

"Don't care." Kaylee sat down in front of Dudley. Jessie looked around nervously and sat down next to Kaylee and frowned. Jessie pulled on Kaylee's arm and Kaylee looked at her. She smiled and looked at Dudley, "Jessie want to know how old you are."

"Nine." Dudley said.

"Oh, same as Harry." Kaylee said. "Harry and Ron are nine. I'm three." Jessie pulled on Kaylee's arm again. Kaylee looked at Jessie again. She turned to Dudley. "Jessie wants to know why you so fat." Kaylee said with a grin. Jessie was grinning as well. Dudley seem to go slightly red and clenched his fists.

"I'm not fat!" Dudley said, "I'm big boned and I need to eat a lot because I'm growing." Kaylee nodded like she was truly interested. She crossed her legs and looked ready to tell a really long story. She flipped her blond hair behind her shoulders.

"Well Jessie and I eat lots and we still skinny as brats, as daddy says. I don't think me skinny. Orion is skinny. But daddy give us sweeties, lots of sweeties and we not allowed sweeties" Kaylee said. Dudley looked at her apprehensively. "Sweeties make us very strange and mummy says we not allowed them but daddy thinks we're funny when we have sweeties. Look, he just bought us more sweeties. Do you want some? You can had nine because you nine, I can only have three because I only three and I wont be four until next year." Kaylee held the bag of sweets for Dudley. Jessie took them and held them in her arms. Kaylee looked at her sister rather annoyed.

"Be nice Jessie." Kaylee said. Jessie glared at Kaylee. "I know you older but you being rude" Jessie held the sweets and ate on. Baloo ventured over and Jessie held a sweet out for the cat to attack. She laughed as Baloo tried to chew on it. Kaylee shrugged.

"Are you twins?" Dudley asked. Kaylee beamed and nodded eagerly. "Why doesn't she speak?"

"Because she's Jessie." Kaylee said. "Jessie never talk unless we try and confuddle mummy and daddy. Only daddy don't know who is who so he's funny. I would give you sweety but Jessie being horrible. She older then me by..." Kaylee stuck up three fingers "This many minutens." She said. Dudley nodded slowly. These girls were strange. He'd never met any twins. He watched Jessie smiling at the cat. What was so fascinating about the cat? She gave the packet of sweets to Kaylee and picked up the cat in a hug. Dudley frowned and pulled the cat's tail to pull the cat out of the way. The cat shrieked and Jessie let out a scream of surprise. The cat turned and scratched Dudley with his claws.

"AH!" Dudley shouted in annoyance. Jessie stood up and picked up the tense Baloo. She looked at Dudley with a quivering lip. Kaylee looked at Jessie in surprise.

"Jessie, Kaylee." April said, coming over. "What happened?" April looked at Kaylee, knowing that she wouldn't get anything out of Jessie. Kaylee looked at Jessie for a few minutes.

"Jessie say that fat boy pulled on Baloo's tail and Baloo scratched her and that the fat boy is a bully." Kaylee said. April turned to look at Dudley who was nursing a scratched hand. Lily came running up from the lake.

"What happened?" She asked anxiously.

"Your nephew is bullying my children." April said, looking at Lily. Lily frowned.

"Dudley, what have I told you about bullying the others?" Lily asked.

"It wasn't my fault. It was that silent brat that was being annoying." Dudley said. April crossed her arms so that she wouldn't do anything. Lily looked at Dudley sceptically.

"Dudley, we're taking you back to the house. If you're not going to try and get along with the others then you can just stay in your room" Lily said. "Come with me." Dudley grinned. He wouldn't have to stay outside. Maybe if he was horrid to these children he wouldn't have to spend so much time with them. Dudley looked at Jessie who held Baloo tightly and glared at him. Dudley now knew what to do to stay on his own.

* * *

Harry held a towel over his head. He was laughing at Emma who had her hair wrapped in a towel like a turban and had her hands together and was bobbing her head from side to side.

"Look, I'm an Egyptian princess." Emma said. "Harry your turn. You be an Egyptian person."

"No. Ask Bo." Harry said pointing to Bo. Emma turned to Bo.

"Bo!" Emma called. Bo looked at her. "Be an Egyptian person." Bo raised an eyebrow and looked at Harry. Harry shrugged.

"What do Egyptian people look like?" He asked.

"Put your towel around here." Emma said pointing at her waist. Bo hesitantly put the towel around his waist. Cho giggled slightly,

"You look strange." Cho said in English.

"So do you." Bo said to Cho. Cho gave him a smile and ruffled up Bo's hair. Bo pulled his head away and scowled at her. Cho laughed and went to Harry's side.

"You look good. You can be the prince." Emma said. "Now, Cho and Harry's turn."

"Um, no. I have...to...dad's calling me." Harry said, he really hated playing dress up with his sister.

"Um..." Cho looked as Harry left. She didn't really want to play either.

"You can be our servant." Bo said with a grin. Cho looked at Bo.

"No! I'm not being a servant." Cho said.

"Ok. You can be..." Emma stood in thought for a moment.

* * *

"What may I get you your royal highnesses?" Cho asked Bo and Emma in an VERY bored voice. Emma laughed, it was entertaining to see Cho pretending to be someone else.

"Bring me my...um...drink!" Bo said.

"Yes your royal highness." Cho said before dragging her feet behind her as she left the room. Harry laughed as he walked past.

"Having fun?" He asked Cho. Cho gave him a sarcastic smile then carried on to the kitchen. Harry went upstairs and left Bo and Emma on their own. Emma sat wiggling her toes and laughing as she did. Bo smiled.

"Emma." Bo said. Emma looked at Bo curiously.

"Yes." Emma said. Bo looked at her nervously and quickly leant forward and gave her a quick kiss. Emma started slightly and looked at Bo.

"Um...sorry." Bo said. Looking away, "I just wanted to see what it was like." Bo said, he was going red and Emma thought it as slightly cute. She looked at Bo slightly confused.

"Why don't you kiss someone else then?" She asked but she was starting to smile slightly. Bo shrugged.

"Um, I think you're prettier then Rhia or anyone else." Bo said quietly. Emma smiled. She jumped up and kissed Bo's cheek quickly then skipped upstairs to her room.

* * *

**A/N:-Ok, That's this chapter up. JEssie, there's your teeny Emma/Bo bit. Starting next week i may not be able to update as often cause i have school, but i'll try and update at least once a week. Also, nearly finished writing this story. I'm on chapter 25 right now (well i've just finsihed writing it) And i think there isn't going to be more then 30 chapters in this story. I attempted to draw Orion and Rhia today....god the picture went really wierd and Orion looks asian but ah well. It's still cool tho. Just to clear up a few general things. Harry, HErmione and Ron DO become friends in Hogwarts. They DO become as close as they are in the books and the DO have all the adventures they've had int he book. And if you people don't choose a character for me to chove through the veil...I'll pick one myself. and at the moment Jenny and SIrius are at the top of my most likely to die list. I feel like replying to a few reviews that i feel that i should reply to. Obviously, i don't normally do this cause i have at lleast 10 regular reviewers and it'll take up too much space so this is only to a few people**

**Lilyflower: I've actually been sitting here thinking exactly that. I knew there was something wrong with the story but i try and write it how my youngest siblings talk (6 and 8) but i don't think it worked. And as for Lily...ah, i don't really care, i just wanted to get Dudley in and she's always been a bit weak against her sister.**

**Rhia: Don't worry about yourself, you feature quite a bit in the next storyline and i have some very interesting stuff for you wen you go to Hogwarts**

**Lillith Potter: I'll give ya a little spoiler now....you go to Hogwarts. So you kinda stay as Emma and Rhia's friend.**


	23. Accidents Happen

**Accidents Happen**

Rhia and Emma watched as Dudley plodded from the kitchen to the living room. They looked at each other, a plan formulating in their minds. They needed Orion's help, as well as Harry's but both boys were willing to help if it meant getting revenge on Dudley for sitting on Rhia's keyboard. Fortunately Sirius had fixed it almost immediately but Rhia wanted revenge.

"Come on." Emma whispered. They crept down the stairs and into the kitchen. Orion was sitting on the work top with Baloo on his legs. He stroked the cat gently.

"What took so long?" He asked.

"Sorry." Rhia said. "Here" She said handing Orion a bag. Orion grinned and put the bag next to him.

"Where's Harry?" Orion asked. Emma shrugged.

"In the loo." Rhia answered.

"Ok. We can carry on though." Orion picked Baloo up and handed him to Emma. He slipped off the work top and landed gently on the floor.

"Where are mum and dad?" Emma asked.

"They went to see Dad's new bike." Orion said. He took the lightsaber that he carried with him most of the time. It was the one that James had bought him for his birthday years ago. He spun it in his hands and let it light up.

"Go Orion!" Rhia snapped. Orion nodded and left the room humming the James Bond tune. Rhia and Emma looked at each other. Orion was the weirdest boy they knew. Orion went into the living room. He had to get Dudley back into the kitchen.

"Oi, fatty!" Orion said. Dudley grunted at him but otherwise ignored him. Orion scowled. He went up and hit Dudley with his lightsaber. He grinned and darted away before Dudley could lash out. Dudley slid off the sofa and glared at Orion.

"Don't hit me" He said.

"Then don't ignore me." Orion said cheekily. He tried to hit Dudley with his lightsaber again. All the children had learnt that it didn't matter if Dudley got hurt, he didn't get hurt by it. In fact they seemed to have realised that he was so fat that anything that hit him just made the fat wobble and made Rhia feel slightly ill. That was enough to get Harry and Dudley in fights regularly over the past week. It didn't help that Dudley seemed to think it was funny to pull Baloo's tail.

Dudley caught the lightsaber. Strangely the heat that it gave off didn't seem to annoy Dudley. He tightened his grip on it. Orion tugged at it trying to get it free.

"Let go." Orion said. Dudley grinned and the lightsaber broke. Orion's jaw dropped as Dudley dropped a piece on the floor. "You idiot!" Orion shouted. He launched himself at Dudley and started attacking him. "That was my favourite toy!" Orion shouted.

"Well you shouldn't have hit me Brian!" Dudley said.

"My name is Orion, you evil-" Dudley pulled Orion off him easily and threw him at the door. Orion just got up again and attacked Dudley again.

"Get off me you rat!" Dudley said.

"You pig!" Orion retorted. Orion let go and darted out the room. Dudley followed, no one was going to start a fight and not finish it. He followed Orion into the kitchen. Orion was standing by the work top looking at Dudley angrily.

"You broke my lightsaber!" He shouted before Dudley tried to swing a fist at Orion. Orion ducked and grabbed Dudley around the neck from behind. Dudley spun around trying to get Orion off him.

"Now!" Rhia shouted. Emma dropped a saucepan and it hit Orion. Orion dropped off Dudley and fell to the floor stunned.

"Oops." Emma said with a frown.

"Emma!" Rhia said worriedly. Dudley grinned.

"Thanks." He said to Emma. He picked up the stunned Orion. Rhia turned around quickly and picked up a frying pan. She threw it down and hit Dudley on the head. He swayed slightly so Rhia picked up another one and threw it at Dudley. This time Dudley fell to the floor with a resounding crash.

"Night night." Rhia said waving a few fingers in the air.

* * *

"Baaaa"

"Right." James said uncertainly. He looked at Lily and Sirius, who were both scowling. "How do we solve this?" Lily walked around the sheep that baa-ed uncomfortably.

"Um..." Lily said, she tapped her wand against her chin.

"What I want to know is..." Sirius said. "How did Dudley get his head up the sheep's arse in the first place?" He said. James nodded.

"There's that as well." James said.

"Um..." Lily said. James put his arms around Dudley's huge bulk and put a foot against the sheep. He tugged as hard as he could. The sheep Baa-ed loudly and they heard muffled screams coming from inside the sheep. James ended up letting go and rolled on the floor at Lily's feet.

"That was a great idea James." Lily said. James smiled at her sheepishly.

"Maybe we could try shrinking Dudley." Sirius said.

"We could try that, but what if we can't get him back to normal size?" Lily asked.

"Trust me, it'll be good for him. Have you see the size of that nephew of yours?" Sirius asked.

"Yeah but..." Lily said uncertainly. She turned to Sirius then nodded. "Ok. Gloves!" She said. James, Sirius and herself summoned a pair of surgical gloves each and put them on.

"Lily, will you do the honours?" James asked. Lily scowled.

"Reducio" She said. Dudley immediately began to shrink until he was literally a small blob sticking out of the sheep's rear end. Lily crouched down and closed her eyes as she held Dudley between two fingers and pulled her free. The sheep immediately ran off to freedom as Lily stood up, holding the tiny Dudley.

"Urgh, this is gross. So gross." Lily said holding Dudley out at arms length. James and Sirius both took a step back in disgust.

"Keep that thing away from us." Sirius said. Lily glared at him.

"Then get the bath running!" Lily said.

"Oh, I'm not seeing that thing naked." Sirius said.

"Sirius! Just do it!" Lily snapped, "Before I'm sick." Sirius darted off to the house. Lily and James followed.

"Well done." James said clapping Lily on the back. She looked like she was actually going to be sick.

"Don't do that again." She said to James.

"Alright." James said with a frown. They entered the kitchen. Rhia and Emma were watching them with curious expressions. Harry had a smirk on his face. Lily took Dudley up the stairs and plopped him into the rising bath.

"Finite Incantatum." Lily said pointing her wand at Dudley. He grew to his usual size. His head was slightly browner then usual. That was too much for Lily. She threw herself at the toilet and put her head over it. James bit his lip and Sirius closed his eyes.

"I hate this house!" Dudley said.

"Just wash your head, mate." Sirius said. "And quickly before we're all sick." He had actually gone pale. The only sounds in the room now were the splashing of the water and Lily retching in the loo.

"Ok, Dudley, who stuck your head up the sheep's...bottom." James said, trying to be serious. He looked at the wet boy.

"I don't know." Dudley said with a sulky look. "Rhia threw a thing at me and then when I woke up I was in the sheep" He said.

"Rhia?" Lily said as she wiped her mouth. Dudley nodded. "Oh Merlin!" Lily said.

"Do you remember anything else?" James asked. Dudley shook his head. James looked at Sirius.

"What do you think?" He asked. Sirius beamed.

"I think Rhia's a genius-ow-I mean she will be punished." Sirius said, rubbing his arm where Lily had sent a stinging hex at him.

"They're horrible to me." Dudley said.

"Well, Dudley, if you're nice to them, they'll be nice to you." Lily said. Dudley scowled at her.

"I'm not being nice to those freaks." Dudley said. The mirror above the sink shattered and James jumped out of the way.

"Apologise for calling them that now!" Lily snapped at Dudley. Dudley looked at his infuriated aunt.

"No!" Dudley said, "They're freaks, and you are all freaks! Mum and Dad were right-" Dudley stopped as Orion walked into the bathroom.

"Daddy!" Orion said sternly. Sirius looked at Orion.

"What is it Orion?" Sirius asked as he lifted up Orion.

"My Lightsaber is broken." Orion said with a quivering mouth. His eyes were quite watery as he held up the end of his lightsaber. Sirius took a sharp breath.

"Who did it?" Sirius asked. Orion turned and glared at Dudley.

"He did!" Orion said. "He broke my Lightsaber, and he broke Rhia's piano and tried to break Cho's hand and-" Orion threw the end of the lightsaber at Dudley in anger. Dudley ducked and stood up.

"Dudley! Wash yourself now!" Lily said.

"No! I'm not taking orders from a freak!" Dudley snapped back at her.

"Orion, it's wrong to throw things at people, even if you don't like them" Sirius scolded. "Dudley, what do you have to say about this?" He asked.

"I'm _not_ sorry" Dudley said. Orion seemed to growl at him and struggled in Sirius' arms.

"I'll kill you!" Orion shouted at Dudley. Dudley clenched his fists. James got out his wand.

"Impedimenta!" He said to Orion, who froze promptly. "Spongify!" He said to Dudley. Dudley immediately became clean. He turned to Lily. "That's it. Get your sister, he's leaving this house. I want him out by tomorrow evening!" James said to Lily. Lily opened her mouth to say something in defence but she couldn't because she wanted him out as well.

"Fine." Lily said. She apparated out of the house. James freed Orion from the spell.

"Orion!" James said. Orion looked at James. "Go and do some flying, let out some steam."

"No, I want to kill Dudley!" Orion said, turning his fierce eyes on Dudley. Sirius tightened his grip on his son.

"We'll get you a new lightsaber." Sirius said, "Killing is wrong"

"No it's not." Orion growled. Sirius looked at James.

"I'll take Rhia and Orion home. It might be safer." James nodded his agreement. Sirius managed to get out of the house as Orion got free and ran at the bath. He had some angry fury that James was scared about. He grabbed the back of Orion's shirt. Orion struggled against it. James picked him up and handed him, with difficulty, back to Sirius. Sirius managed to get Orion out and called for Rhia. James turned to Dudley. Dudley glared at him.

"I hope you're happy Dudley." James said. He closed the door and left Dudley to do what he wanted.

* * *

Lily returned that night and looked at James.

"Petunia's in Cardiff!" Lily snapped at him. "That Bitch is in Cardiff! That's only ten miles away!" She nearly screamed. "I spent all day looking for-" James pulled Lily into a hug.

"It's ok. But Dudley's going right?" James asked. Lily nodded.

"Tomorrow." Lily said, "Petunia will be here at about lunch time" James sighed with relief.

"Thank god. The sooner he goes that happier all of us will be. He's destroying everything." James couldn't finish the sentence before there was a scream and a crash.

"GIVE IT BACK!" They heard Emma screaming. Lily and James looked at each other before running up the stairs and to Emma's room. Emma and Harry were trying to get to Dudley, who was pushing them away with relative ease.

"What's this?" Dudley asked. He held Emma's guitar. He pulled on a string to see what would happen.

"No!" Emma shouted as the string broke and snapped. Emma winced and her face went slightly red.

"Dudley!" Lily said walking into the room. Dudley looked at her and smiled.

"Hello aunt Freaky!" He said. Lily took a long steady breath.

"Put the guitar down" She said. She was using all her willpower not to curse the living daylights out of this nine year old that was really testing her patience. Dudley pulled on another string. At this Harry rushed at him and pulled at the guitar.

"Let go of it!" Harry said through gritted teeth as he wrestled Dudley over the guitar.

"Harry!" James snapped. "Get it off him now!" Lily looked at James at those words of encouragement. James shrugged at Lily. Emma joined in when her parent's weren't looking. When Lily turned around again Dudley had Harry puling on the guitar and trying to kick Dudley while Emma had her arms around Dudley's neck. Dudley was starting to go slightly red.

"Emma!" Lily said slightly alarmed. Harry managed to get the guitar free and rolled into a large mound of toys. There was a large cracking noise and Harry and the guitar got buried under a pile of soft toys. Emma was still holding onto Dudley. She looked about as angry as Orion had been earlier that day.

"Uh oh." James said. He and Lily went to the two fighting children. Lily managed to pry Emma off Dudley as Harry emerged from under the toys.

"Will you all stop fighting!" Lily snapped at them all. Emma was breathing heavily. Harry held the guitar in one hand. He looked at it. It was in three pieces. He frowned and pushed it under the soft toys.

"Harry, where's the guitar?" James asked.

"I don't know." Harry said quickly. James and Lily looked at him sceptically. Harry frowned and closed his eyes as he picked up the guitar. "I didn't do it!" He said. Emma's mouth dropped open and she started to cry.

"My guitar is broken!" She cried.

"We can fix it." Lily said. She picked it up. "Harry, go to your bedroom now!" She snapped. "Dudley! You're going to sleep as well now!"

"But it's only eight o'clock." Dudley said.

"I DON'T CARE! GET TO BED!" Lily said, losing her patience. "NOW!" She screamed at the two boys. Harry jumped in surprise. He'd never heard his mum shout like that. He quickly left the room. Dudley also started in surprise and slowly plodded out of the room. Lily's emerald eyes were blazing with anger and frustration. James seemed reluctant to go near Lily.

"Lily." He said hesitantly.

"Just leave me alone." Lily snapped at James. James nodded and left the room. He closed the door behind him. Emma held onto Lily, sobbing over her broken guitar. Lily put the guitar on the desk in Emma's room that was covered in drawings and pictures that Emma, Rhia and Kara had drawn. Emma looked at it despairingly. Lily set Emma on the bed and got out her sleeping clothes.

"Mummy." Emma said hesitantly.

"Yes Emma." Lily said, trying to calm herself down.

"Will I get a new guitar?" Emma asked. She looked at the guitar on the desk. Lily started to change Emma's clothes then put a hand on Emma's hair.

"I'll buy you a new one tomorrow." Lily said. Emma nodded. Lily began to tuck Emma in.

"Mummy, don't be angry. You're scary when you're angry." Emma said. Lily smiled gently at her daughter.

"I'm sorry Emma. It's just your cousin was really...never mind. I'm sorry Emma." Lily said. Emma smiled a fairly wet smile. Tears still glistening on her cheeks. Lily picked up the corner of the duvet and wiped Emma's face. She flicked Emma's nose playfully afterwards, making Emma laugh slightly. Lily smiled.

"Can you read me a story?" Emma asked. Lily nodded and stood up to get a book. "The red book with the fairytales." Emma said. Lily smiled at her and picked up a red leather bound book from the desk. She went to the bed and Emma moved out of the way so that Lily could get onto the bed. She climbed over Lily's legs and leant against her body. Lily opened the book and began reading the story. She could feel herself calming down as she did. She didn't remember getting so angry before. Well, yes, there had been one time, in her fifth year at Hogwarts, when James was picking of Severus Snape. But that was over ten years ago. It was a strange feeling and one that Lily hoped would never return.

* * *

Breakfast the next morning was a pretty quiet affair. Dudley was scoffing his face in front of the TV in the living room. Harry was pretty quiet and James felt slightly worried about Lily, who'd also been quite quiet. Emma was the only one who was talking, she was talking to Baloo who pawed Emma's piece of toast curiously.

"I'm ok James. I promise you." Lily said to him. James frowned like he didn't believe her.

"You're not going to get angry again?" He asked nervously. Lily smiled slightly.

"No I'm not." She said. James still scowled. "What's wrong?" Lily asked James. He shrugged. He did actually look rather upset about something. "James, do you want me to shout again?" Lily asked with a smirk. James smiled and looked at Lily.

"I don't know. It was weird, last night was the first night we haven't slept in the same bed in ten years." James said. Lily laughed lightly.

"Is that all that's worrying you?" She asked. James smiled sheepishly. Lily brushed his hair back and kissed his cheek. "I just fell asleep in Emma's bed." James pouted.

"But how could you forget about me?" James said. Lily hit him playfully and James grinned.

"Is Dudley going home today?" Harry asked with a hopeful look.

"Hopefully." Lily said, "Then it'll be just our family again." Lily said with a smile.

"I don't understand why you agreed to baby sit that brat." James said pulling Lily over onto his legs and putting an arm around her waist.

"Petunia's my sister and I can't just ignore her." Lily said. "Plus she's always been able to make me do things I don't want to do." Lily said with a slightly downcast look.

"Yeah, you have to stop her from doing that." James said. Lily smiled.

"Well, I did embarrass her in front of everyone yesterday." Lily said. "I don't think she'll ever speak to me again." Lily said with a grin.

"What happened?" Harry asked.

"Well, I sort of shouted at her in front of the entire crowd at the drill convention. Talking about how badly behaved Dudley is and how he's destroyed what and she just got so angry with me." Lily said with a gleeful grin. James laughed and kissed Lily cheek.

"That's my girl." He said. Lily gave him a look of warning and James went back to eating his breakfast.

* * *

"You are the worst person alive!" Petunia shouted at Lily as she took Dudley out of the house.

"Me! I'm not the one who's raised a boy who thinks it's good to destroy other people's property!" Lily snapped at Petunia. James put a hesitant hand on Lily's shoulder. Petunia looked at Lily with hate and looked like she was trying to think of a come back.

"At least he's not a Freak!" Petunia snapped.

"I'm not a freak!" Lily said, "If anyone is a freak it's you!" She snapped.

"Lily." James said. Lily shrugged him away.

"Me? A freak! Have you looked in a mirror recently! At least I have a normal husband, a well behaved son-" Lily scoffed at that "-and I have a normal job!"

"I do have a normal Job! I'm a Doctor! More then you've every tried to do." Lily said to Petunia.

"I don't want to work. I want to be a proper mother and stay at home to look after my boy." Petunia said. Lily took a deep breath and picked up a bag. She threw it at Petunia and slammed the door. James burst out laughing, Lily looked at him sharply.

"What are you laughing at?" Lily snapped. James tried not to laugh.

"Well, you." He said. Lily looked at him confused. "Don't worry. You're beautiful and better then your sister." Lily started laughing

"I should hope so" Lily said with a smirk. James gave Lily a quick kiss.

"Lets go and repair the damage that Dudley has caused." James said.

"A new guitar then." Lily said with a sigh. "The less I see of Petunia the happier I'll be." James grinned and they went to hunt for Emma to take her shopping.

* * *

Orion sat on the curb of the road just outside his school. Rhia was in trouble again with the head mistress, this time for managing to climb onto a roof of the school and start dancing with Emma and Kara. It had been entertaining and it had taken the teachers about half an hour to get them down. No one knew how they all managed to get up in the first place. Now Emma and Kara's mums were talking to the head mistress with Orion's mum. He sat on the curb and sighed. He put his chin in his hands and looked down the road. It wasn't very busy, in fact, it was more of a dirt road. There were a group of boys standing on the corner. They had with them some skateboards and they were jeering at each other as they tried to jump on them and did various things on the skateboards. They looked like they were about fifteen. Orion looked at them curiously as they all started skateboarding down the road and did a jump in front of Orion.

One boy, with fairly long curly light brown hair and a baseball cap jumped and flipped the skateboard in front of Orion and landed on the skateboard neatly. Orion watched him in awe. He would love to do that. He had a BMX bike which he made his mum buy him after he'd seen on e on TV. They skateboarded for about another ten minutes before the boy with curly hair spotted Orion and came over.

"Hey." He said. Orion looked up.

"Hello." Orion said.

"What ya doing? Isn't your mum here?" He asked.

"Yes. She's talking to Mrs. Hardy" Orion said.

"Oh, that old bat." The boy said. "What's your name?"

"Orion." Orion said.

"How old are you?"

"Six."

"Cool, I'm Fez." He said. Orion gave him a smile then looked at Fez's skateboard. Fez noticed where Orion was looking and put the skateboard on the floor.

"You want a go?" He asked Orion. Orion looked at Fez and grinned. He stood up and dropped his bag on the pavement.

"How do I do this?" Orion asked. Fez helped Orion stand on the skateboard and held his hands while Orion tried to balance on it.

"Ok, that's good. Now point one foot forwards, your front foot, that's good. Now with your other foot push on the floor." Fez said. Fez held one of Orion's hands as Orion tried to do as Fez said. He moved slightly and Orion nearly fell off. He felt slightly unsteady on the skateboard. Fez let go of Orion and let him try on his own.

"Oi, Fez, what the hell-" a boy said skating up to him but Fez made him be quiet and smirked as Orion grinned and went down the road. Orion jumped off the skateboard and turned it around then started back to the school

"That's really good." Fez said.

"Thanks." Orion said.

"You're a natural. Now if you want to turn lean to one side. Show him Kelso." Fez said. The boy that was next to Fez scowled then nodded. He threw his board on the floor and jumped onto it and went down the road. He showed Orion how to turn on the board the came back. He did a quick jump, a manual and then jumped off the board. He stamped on the end and flipped the skateboard into his hand. Orion looked at him with his mouth slightly open.

"That was good." Orion said. Kelso smiled and ruffled Orion's hair.

"Thanks kid." He said. "You're cute." He said. Orion grinned and tried to skateboard again. He went down the road and leant to the side. He leant a bit too far and the skateboard slipped from under him and he fell over. He started laughing and tired again.

"How old is he?" Kelso asked Fez.

"Six." Fez said.

"He's quite good." Kelso said.

"I know. Well, we've converted another kid to our cause." Fez said with a grin. Kelso laughed.

"Yeah, whatever." April came out of the school with Lily. Emma, Rhia and Kara were behind them talking while Kara's mum was a few steps behind.

"Orion!" April called.

"Coming." Orion said. He pushed himself towards April and tried to stop by pressing down the back part of the skateboard. Fez laughed as Orion picked ut he skateboard and gave it to him. "Thanks." Orion said.

"No problem kid." He said.

"Orion." April said curiously. "Who are you?" April asked. Fez and Kelso looked at April and grinned.

"You're the lady who's like, really cool." Fez said. April frowned and looked at Lily.

"I don't know about this reputation." Lily said.

"Kara always says how cool you are. You sound really cool lady." Kelso said.

"Kelso, be quiet and get home. You should be home by now." Kara's mum said. April looked at Kara's mum curiously. "April, Lily, this is my eldest son Kelso and his friend Fez."

"Hi." Kelso said. Lily smiled and April shook her head in amusement. "Is Orion yours?" He asked April.

"Yes he is."

"He's really good on a skateboard. I'll give you one of my old ones when we get home." Kelso said.

"I'm sure I can buy him one." April said.

"No, let him, he's got too many anyway," Kara's mum said with a smile.

"Alright then." April said.

"Yes!" Orion said. "Mummy, I love you!" Orion sad hugging April's legs. April took a step back in surprise. Lily laughed.

"Come on children" Lily said.

"Where's Harry?" Kara's mum asked.

"Oh, he's visiting a friend, um, I think his name is Jeff." Lily said.

"Ok. Well, I'll see you later. Do you want me to pick up Kara at six?" Kara's mum said.

"Oh, whenever. We don't mind." Lily said. Kara's mum smiled and gave Kara a quick kiss before looking at Kelso to go home.

"Coming mum." Kelso said. "See ya kid!" He said waving at Orion as he left.

"Bye!" Orion said waving manically. April laughed and took Orion's hand.

"Come on." She said

* * *

**A/N:-Ok, i swear i DO NOT watch that 70s show, but me and KAylee were talking about it and somehow the names appeared in the story.....don't ask how or why cause..I DON'T KNOW!! Ok, some important bits happened in this story....well one important bit...actually it's not that important but it leads to a funny scene with snape in the future stories....well it's not that funny but still. I tried to extend the scene where Lily just went mad but i didn't know how really. This chapter would have been up sooner but a) Jessie was mean to me so i said i wudn't update till today, b)my stupid_ brother _decided he wanted to steal my Teneacious D album so he hijacked my computer while i was trying to update! stupid brother, and c) there's this really annoying fly that keeps buzzing around my desk and its really really really irritating it's like...."Here it comes" bzzzzzzzzzz (fade to nothing)..."Here it comes again" (from nothing) bzzzzzzzzzz(really loud) zzzzzzzzzz(fade to nothing).....stupid fly..grrr....anyway, school starts...today so fewer updates cause less time to write...hehe..anyway. Hope you have a good day.....signing off at 00.14am...not a good time to deciding to sleep**


	24. Winter Expulsion

**Winter Expulsion**

**Early 1981- Harry is 10 going on 11**

Harry sat in the playground talking to some of his friends. They had been playing football but after one of them had slipped in the snow and twisted his ankle they'd given up. The snow was about a foot high, though on the playground it seemed to be a bit of a sludge. They shouldn't be out but the teachers couldn't really keep them under control inside. They'd been inside for three weeks now and the children wanted out.

"Harry!" shouted Emma as she ran over to her brother with Rhia and Kara.

"What is it?" Harry asked. His friends looked rather amused.

"Kaylee and Jessie might be getting into trouble again." Kara said.

"That's not my problem, they're in the infant school." Harry said.

"Yeah but we can't find Orion to warn him." Emma said. Harry rolled his eyes.

"Sorry guys." He said to his friends before following Emma and her friends. "Those twins are so annoying! Why don't you try and sort out Jessie and Kaylee yourselves."

"They won't listen to us." Rhia said quietly. Harry looked at Rhia curiously.

"They won't?" Harry asked. Rhia shook her head and smiled at the floor. Harry looked at Emma. Rhia always acted like that around him. Usually when she was really loud and hyper but she seemed to calm down a bit in front of Harry.

"Ok, how do we get into the infant school?" Harry asked. Their school was divided into two bits. The juniors and the infants. There was a bit of chicken wire that separated the playgrounds so the children didn't mix. There had been a few cases of the juniors bullying the infants so they built the fence to keep the juniors out. Of course that didn't stop Emma and her friends.

"Follow us." Kara said. They walked down the length of fence to a bit where the wire had obviously been cut. Emma pulled off her gloves and started to undo the small bits of wire that held the wire together.

"Hey guys." Came Orion. He was still in the infant school but he really wanted to be in the juniors.

"Hey." Rhia said, "Have you seen our annoying little sisters?" Rhia asked.

"Um, yeah, why?" Orion asked.

"They're going to get into trouble." Kara said.

"How do you know anyway?" Harry asked.

"Because we saw them on the roof!" Emma said. "Remember when we went on the roof?" Orion grinned, that had been when he'd started skateboarding.

"It's cold." Rhia said rubbing her arms. The girls all wore skirts and fairly long socks. They had their coats and jumpers on but they were still really cold. Harry shrugged off his coat, he felt rather hot.

"Here." Harry said handing it to Rhia. Rhia went slightly red.

"Um, no it's ok." She said.

"No take it, I'm not cold at all." Harry said. Rhia took it shyly and put it on over her own coat.

"Ah, got it." Emma said. She pulled the chicken wire aside and slipped in through the gap. Orion looked at her confused.

"What are you doing?" Orion asked.

"Stopping your sisters!" Kara said as she squeezed through as well. Harry waited for Rhia to go through and then went through himself. The infants were teeny compared to the four juniors.

"Ok, where did you see them?" Harry asked.

"Um." The three girls scanned the playground. There was a crash and a tree started swaying. A few more crashes later and two young identical looking girls plopped out of the tree.

"Ow." One of them muttered.

"There!" Rhia said pointing to her sisters. The two younger girls had identical dark blond hair, the same brown eyes and both wore necklaces. One had a K and the other wore a J. They got up and the one wearing a K necklace grinned cheekily.

"Oh no!" Rhia said. She ran across the playground with Kara and they tried to catch one of the twins. They managed to get Jessie, who decided she'd rather stay with her older sister then her twin sister. Emma ran after Kaylee but Kaylee slipped through another fence and onto the ice covered car park where the teacher's cars were parked.

Emma and Harry stood at the fence and looked at each other. This wasn't good. Harry turned to where Rhia and Kara came up to them. Jessie surgically attacked to Rhia's hand.

"Where did she go?" Rhia asked. Jessie grinned widely.

"Where has she gone Jess?" Harry asked, "If you two get into any more trouble then you'll be in VERY big trouble." Jessie continued to grin and hugged Rhia.

"Oh-" Kara looked like she was ready to swear, had she been old enough to not care about swearing.

"HARRY!" Orion shouted from across the playground. Harry looked at Orion, who pointed past the fence. The four juniors ran over and saw Kaylee on the roof of the lunch hall. She was just climbing up and then she stood there beaming. When she saw Harry and the others staring she grinned and waved at them. Jessie waved back and she began laughing. Rhia hit Jessie lightly and Jessie stopped laughing. Rhia turned to Harry, who was looking at her apprehensively.

"Oh, Mum's going to kill me." Rhia complained.

"No she wont." Emma said.

"She will." Harry said, "The oldest always gets into trouble." He said pointedly at Emma. Emma grinned and shrugged.

"Not my fault you blew up the TV." Emma said with an innocent smile.

* * *

"Kaylee Black." Mrs. Hardy said to Kaylee. 

"Yes?" Kaylee said sweetly with a grin.

"Don't you smile. Do you know how much trouble you're in?" Mrs. Hardy said. Kaylee shook her head and grinned. Mrs. Hardy shook her head and wrote down something. Kaylee craned her neck to see what she was writing. Kaylee couldn't read but that didn't stop her. There was a knock at the door and Mrs. Hardy shouted "Come in." The door opened and James Potter came into the room. Mrs. Hardy looked up.

"Hi, James Potter." He said holding his hand out. His hair looked rather windswept and slightly out of breath.

"Where are Mr. And Mrs. Black."

"Oh, they send their apologies but due to various reasons they can't come. There was a crisis at Mrs. Black's office and Mr. Black will have to travel about three hours to get here. I'm Kaylee's godfather." He said. Mrs. Hardy nodded and indicated for him to take a seat. James did so and looked at Kaylee. Kaylee had her hands folded in her lap and she as looking at the walls.

"I'm afraid Kaylee is in serious trouble." Mrs. Hardy said.

"What kind of trouble?" James asked with a frown. He rested an ankle on his knee and leant forwards slightly.

"Kaylee has been attending this school for five months. She joined in September and in five months she has managed to get on the roof eight times, she's set the kitchen on fire, crumbled all the chalk sticks to powder every time her teacher gets a new box. Hidden the school accounts, god knows how they got those." Mrs. Hardy went through a rather long list and James' eyes widened in horror and surprise. He looked at Kaylee, who was grinning at each of her 'achievements' and humming a soft tune. Mrs. Hardy stopped and all they could hear was Kaylee laughing. James pinched the top of his nose with his fingers. How was he going to sort this out? April or Sirius really needed to be here.

"Kaylee, be quiet!" James snapped at her. Kaylee went quiet and looked at James. "Did you really do all this?" James asked.

"Yes." Kaylee said with a grin. "Jessie helped me sometimes."

"Yes, well there's the other problem with her sister. Now both girls are very bright and they are very enthusiastic girls. But I'm afraid they will have to be separated. On the whole Jessica is rather well behaved but when she's with Kaylee she becomes rather disrupted. Now, I would hate to bring this predicament on you but I'm afraid that we have tried to move them into separate classes, and if anything it made them worse." Mrs. Hardy said. James looked at her, he was at a loss. "I'm afraid that even though, Kaylee isn't yet even five I will have to prevent her from attending the school" Mrs. Hardy said.

"And that means?" James said. He really hoped it didn't mean what he thought it meant.

"Kaylee Black is expelled. You will have to move her into a different school. She is simply too destructive to carry on at this school" Mrs. Hardy said sternly.

"What!" James said planting both his feet on the floor. "You can't expel Kaylee, she's only four!"

"I'm sorry Mr. Potter but I'm afraid that the only way she will be allowed back into the school is if her behaviour is improved but even then it is highly unlikely. I also believe it will be good for her to spend some time away from her sister" Mrs. Hardy said. Kaylee's mouth dropped open.

"Away from Jessie?" She asked. Mrs. Hardy nodded. Kaylee stood up in her seat. "You can not do that!" She shouted at Mrs. Hardy

"Sit down Kaylee!" James snapped at Kaylee.

"Not if she seprate me and Jessie! She's my sister!" Kaylee said. Mrs. Hardy looked at James.

"An example at her disregard for authority." Mrs. Hardy said.

* * *

Rhia sat on the sofa, hugging her knees. Orion was sitting next to her with a frown and the twins were sharing a chair for one person. Their dad was glowering at them. 

"Rhia! You are responsible for making sure they don't misbehave!" Sirius said

"But I can't keep an eye on them all the time! Orion should look after them!" Rhia said in defence.

"I don't care. You are the oldest and while your mum and I aren't present you should look after your sisters."

"I tried to!" Rhia said, "I did but they just don't listen to me! AND they're in the infant school!" Sirius scowled.

"Which school are you in?" He asked.

"The junior one dad." Orion said.

"Oh yeah." Sirius said. He turned to Rhia. "But you've still got to look after them"

"Why! You're their dad!" Rhia said. Sirius scowled.

"Just be grateful your mum's stuck in the middle of Romania." Sirius said a bit more gently. Rhia looked at her dad coldly before getting up and leaving the room. "Rhia!" Sirius said helplessly. He started as he heard Rhia's bedroom door slam shut.

"Not cool dad." Orion said as he got off the sofa and picked up his skateboard.

"And where are you going?" Sirius asked.

"My bedroom?" Orion said like it was obvious.

"Oh, ok." Sirius said. Orion left. Kaylee and Jessie got up.

"Ok, we go outside." Kaylee said. Sirius turned to look at his daughters sternly

"Oh no you don't. You two are staying there until your mum gets home" He said in such a dangerous tone that Kaylee and Jessie sat back down and stayed silent for once in Kaylee's life.

* * *

It was unfair. Kaylee got expelled and Rhia got told off for it. It wasn't her fault that her sisters were complete troublemakers who never followed the rules! She sat on her windowsill and looked out of the steamed window. She loved her dad, more then anyone else, well not everyone else, there was one person she loved more but she wasn't even sure if she loved him or what her feeling to him was. Rhia put her head against the window and stared out into the garden where Orion was constructing some kind of snowy ramp thing. Didn't he ever understand that you can't skateboard in the snow! Rhia watched him for a while then when Orion had finished he got one of his old skateboarding desk, one without wheels, Rhia vaguely remember Jessie pulling it apart and throwing the wheels into the lake that Harry's parents owned. He went to the end of the garden. Put the deck on the floor and pushed it like a snowboard. He got to the ramp and he jumped slightly in the air before crashing down on the floor. Orion scowled and decided to try going down the ramp. 

Rhia sighed and played with a lock of her hair. She wanted to go out flying but unlike the Potters, she lived in the middle of Godric's hollow. Suddenly there was a tapping on the window and Harry's face appeared in the middle of the air.

"Ah!" Rhia shouted as she fell off the window sill in surprise. Harry laughed as Rhia got up and opened the window. The cold air rushed in and Harry climbed into her room and closed the window. Rhia was looking at him in shock.

"What?" Harry asked.

"Where's your body?" Rhia asked. Harry looked down.

"Oh yeah" Harry pulled off a long silvery cloak and held it in his hand. "I stole my dad's invisibility cloak." Rhia nodded and smiled. He held a broom in one hand. He dropped it on the floor and jumped onto Rhia's bed.

"Did you get into trouble?" Harry asked. Rhia nodded.

"It's not my fault that Kaylee got expelled."

"Kaylee got expelled?" Harry asked. Rhia nodded. "Wow. She isn't even five yet!"

"I know." Rhia said. She sat down next to Harry and sighed. "It's unfair that I get blamed for everything!" Harry gave her a supportive smile.

"If it helps I get blamed for everything Emma does." He said.

"But it's Emma" Rhia said, "She doesn't get into much trouble." Harry nodded in agreement.

"True." He said. Rhia gave another sigh. Harry smiled. He suddenly jumped up and took Rhia's hand. "Come on." He said.

"What? Where are we going?" Rhia asked. He picked up his broom and the cloak.

"Just come with me." He pulled the cloak around the two of them and was about to open the window when the door opened.

"Rhia?" Sirius said. He looked in. Rhia tensed and looked at Harry. He put a finger against his lips. "Rhia?" Sirius said coming into the room. Rhia started to smile as Sirius frowned slightly and sighed. "She must be at James." He muttered to himself. "I knew I shouldn't have had a go at her." He said as he left the room. He closed the door and Harry laughed slightly.

"Come on." He said. He pulled open the windows and helped Rhia onto the window sill.

"Where are we going?" Rhia asked.

"Oh, just for a broom ride. You look like you need to go flying." He said. Rhia let out a long breath.

"Is it that obvious" She asked. Harry smiled and helped her onto the broom.

"Come on, you lead the way." He said as they flew high in the air. Rhia grinned and Harry held her onto the broom. She smiled to herself, yeah, there was only one person she loved more then her dad.

* * *

Kaylee and Jessie had stayed absolutely silent from the moment their dad had a go at them to the moment their mum got back. It was about eleven o'clock at night. It was the longest that Kaylee had ever been silent but she was scared. She didn't know what her mum would do. Normally her dad laughed but he'd gotten angry and shouted at Rhia more then he usually did. What was mum going to be like? April came into the living room and stopped. She frowned then turned around. 

"Sirius! Why aren't the girls in bed?" April asked. Sirius came into the room and frowned.

"Oh yeah, I forgot they were there. They've been really quiet." Sirius said.

"Kaylee, silent?" April asked. Kaylee nodded. April looked at Kaylee then at Sirius. "What happened?" She asked. "And don't lie, I don't want to have to read you." She said. Sirius twisted his hands nervously and bit his lip.

"Um, well. Kaylee got into a bit of trouble..."

"Again?" April asked tiredly.

"Well, not a little, a lot of trouble." Sirius said. April looked at him.

"Why didn't the other children try and stop them?" April asked.

"They did." Jessie breathed. Sirius and April looked at Jessie in surprise. "I stay with Rhia. Kaylee got into trouble." She said. April looked at Jessie for a few moments before turning to Sirius slowly. Sirius seemed to be very scared of her.

"What happened Sirius?" April asked, "Is this what James had to see to earlier?"

"Um, yeah." Sirius said. "Um, you see, according to James, he was speaking to their headmistress and um..." Sirius took a breath. "Kaylee's expelled." He said quickly. So quickly April thought she hadn't heard it properly. She looked into Sirius's eyes. He knew better then to close them and stopping April. April's look of confusion fell away to disappointment and anger.

"She's only four! How the hell could she get expelled!?" April asked Sirius.

"I'm not sure but you'll have to ask James, he knows more about it. But the bottom line is that we've got to find another school for them" Sirius said.

"Only me." Kaylee said. April turned to Kaylee.

"Be quiet!" April snapped, "You've been misbehaving too much. Why don't you act more like Rhia or Jessie? They hardly ever get into as much trouble as you, why don't you just copy them"

"Rhia's boring and Jessie is too quiet." Kaylee said.

"But at least they don't get into trouble!" April said. "That's it. You are not going to get anything for the next few months and you're not allowed to go outside and play-" Kaylee was about to protest but April held her wand out at Kaylee. "Don't talk back Kaylee. You're in very big trouble." Kaylee looked at the floor and nodded.

"Why does she listen to you and not me?" Sirius asked April. April shrugged.

"Do you know ho difficult it is going to be to find a school for her now. At least some time apart will do those twins some good. You two spend too much time together!" April said to them. "Kaylee, if you get into trouble one more time you're moving into Rhia's room" Kaylee and Jessie looked at April. Jessie with a grin at the thought of a room to herself, Kaylee with a look of horror. Share a room with Rhia? Rhia was boring! All she did was talk about Harry or about homework or about going swimming or flying or horse riding with Kara and Emma!

"But Rhia's b-"

"Don't you say Rhia's boring!" April said, "She's more sensible and you should be more like her, or at least like Jessie! Now get to your bedroom! Both of you. Go to bed!" April said. Kaylee and Jessie slipped off the chair and left the room. Orion ran down the stairs and nearly knocked over Kaylee. He wore his favourite Star wars PJs and skid to a stop in front of his parents.

"Mum! Dad!" Orion said. "Rhia's missing!" He said. April and Sirius looked at Orion.

"What?" Sirius asked. "She's supposed to be in her room."

"She's not there, and she's not in the bathroom and I've looked for her to tell her something but I can't find her!" Orion said.

"Shit!" April said.

"Yeah, Rhia is very sensible Mummy!" Kaylee said.

* * *

Rhia hid under a bush. Where was Harry? She scooped up some snow and crushed it into a snowball. It was very dark but it was fun to have a snowball fight. She knelt up and glanced over the top of the bush. She grinned as she as a tiny reflection of the moonlight against his glasses. She grinned and got ready to throw the snow. She stood up and was about to throw the snow but couldn't see Harry. She frowned and fell sideways as a huge pile of snow hit her at the side of her head. 

"Harry!" Rhia snapped. Harry was rolling on the floor laughing. Rhia scowled and kicked some snow at him and threw the snowball at his face.

"Ow!" Harry said rubbing his cheek where Rhia had hit him. Rhia gave him a smug smile.

"You shouldn't have hit me." She said. Harry pretended to glower at her. She gave a smile and ran for Harry's broom before he could chase her. He ran after her and threw a snowball at the back of her head. Rhia ducked and ran behind a tree.

"Missed me." Rhia shouted.

"No I didn't" Harry replied. Rhia scowled as a pile of snow fell on top of her from the branches above her. Harry started laughing. Rhia dug her way out of the pile of snow.

"You're horrible to me!" Rhia said. Harry smirked and then flew down from the tree to Rhia's side.

"But you still like me?" Harry said. Rhia went slightly red. It was dark so Harry couldn't see.

"I think we should go home now." Rhia said.

"Yeah. Mum and Dad will get annoyed with me." Harry said. "I sneaked out of the house."

"Same." Rhia said. Harry smiled at Rhia and let her get on the broom. He pulled the invisibility cloak around them and launched them into the air. They had gone quite far away from Godric's Hollow. Harry knew which way to go to get back to the house. They flew for about fifteen minutes in silence then they came to Rhia's bedroom window. She pulled them open and awkwardly climbed into her bedroom.

"See you tomorrow." Harry said. Rhia smiled and closed the window just as her bedroom light switched on. Rhia turned to see April in her bedroom.

"Mum?" Rhia asked. She crossed her arms and tried not to shiver.

"Where have you been?" April asked.

"Um...out?" Rhia said

"Do you know what time it is?" April asked. Rhia shook her head. "It's nearly midnight."

"Oops." Rhia said. "Harry and I didn't mean to be out that long. I swear." Rhia said nervously. April looked at her curiously.

"Harry? What's Harry got to do with anything?" April asked.

"Harry and I had a snowball fight." Rhia said. April nodded slowly.

"That's why you're all red and dripping wet. Come here Rhia." April said. Rhia nodded and went to April. April closed the door and got out her wand. She said a spell that dried off Rhia.

"Get changed and go to bed." April said. Rhia looked at April with a frown

"Aren't I in trouble?" Rhia asked.

"No, you're not." April said. Rhia frowned at her luck.

"Why?" Rhia asked.

"Because I've exhausted myself with Kaylee"

"That wasn't my fault." Rhia said quickly.

"I know it wasn't." April said. Rhia smiled. "Good night Rhia." April said going to the door. Rhia sat on her bed for a moment.

"Mum." Rhia said. April turned around.

"Yes?"

"What's love?" Rhia asked. April raised an eyebrow.

"Why?" She asked with a smile.

"I just want to know." Rhia said shyly. April sat down next to Rhia.

"Why do you want to know?" April asked with a smile. Rhia shrugged.

"I don't know." She said.

"Well, love, is a feeling that you get when you care for something, or someone, more then anything in the world. And you'll do anything for them." April said.

"Do you shiver with happiness when they say your name?" Rhia asked. April laughed gently.

"Yes. You do." April said. Rhia grinned to herself and cuddled her knees. April smiled and pulled Rhia closer to her. "Why? Who are you in love with?" Rhia shook her head.

"No one." She said. April laughed gently.

"Is it Harry?"

"No." Rhia said quickly and seriously. She looked at April slightly scared and shaking her head. "No, not Harry." April smiled.

"Ok Rhia," She kissed Rhia's forehead. "Good night."

"Good night mum." Rhia said. April left the room and Rhia sighed. That was close

* * *

**A/N:-Ok, one more chapter to go then this story is FINI!!! THe new story will be called _A New Beginning_. It'll start in HArry's 6th year. There is a small introduction to it so don't worry. Also I'm back at school so i won't be able to update as often (glares at Rhia and Kaylee).....My education is far more important then writing, articularly after my spectacularly crap AS results...apparently they're quite good but to me i failed and if i want to get to med school i gotta work this year, but as i have so many free periods I'll do some writing on paper at school for you people. This story will never leave my mind, i hold this story close to my heart and several of you reveiwers...well I love you all as well, you will stay with me forever, well in my heart anyway. I'm being all sentimental like i'm never gonna update again, haha. Anyway, next chapter is the last. It ends with a rather amusing scene invovling Lily, Emma and Harry. It was kinda embarassing to write cause i felt slightly embarassed for the characters but it's kinda funny, just make sure you know the song _Car Wash!_ Also, I will no longer say any thing about relationships cause i'm scared that i'll ruin it. and those of you who do know what's planned in the next story please hush. I don't want anyone knowing whose going through the veil ;)**


	25. New Schools

**New Schools**

Kaylee sat in her desk at her new school. She didn't like it. She didn't like going anywhere where Jessie wasn't going to be. The students were weird, the Teacher was weird, everyone was kind of behaved and were generally nice and weird. Kaylee didn't like it. She wanted to go to her old school. Well, she wanted Jessie with her. It was scary.

"Kaylee, what does this say?" The teacher asked. Kaylee looked at the Teacher, she hadn't been listening.

"Um..."

* * *

"How was school?" Rhia asked Kaylee as she trudged into the Potter house. Kaylee grumbled slightly and sat on the sofa. Rhia and Emma smirked at each other.

"It probably wasn't that bad" Harry said.

"Evil!" Kaylee said.

"Aww." Rhia said pretending to be sympathetic but in a way it was a relief that she didn't have to look after Kaylee at school. Kaylee threw her bag at her sister in annoyance.

"Where Jessie?" Kaylee asked.

"Coming." Emma said. "Um, there" Emma said. She was playing a game with Rhia and Harry and Kara. She grinned as she overtook Harry's piece.

"Emma! I was winning!" Harry said.

"I know." Emma said with a grin. Kaylee crossed her arms in annoyance. She wanted her sister. There front door opened and closed and Kaylee saw her mum walking past the living room. Jessie walked past as well looking rather miserable.

"JESSIE!" Kaylee shouted. Jessie stopped and turned to look at Kaylee.

"KAYLEE!" She shouted. Kara looked up and at Jessie as Jessie ran into the room. Jessie jumped onto the sofa and hugged her sister tightly. Neither seemed to let go of each other.

"Oh joy, they're together again!" Rhia said sarcastically.

"You horrible." Kaylee said to Rhia.

"Excuse me but I'm not the one who got kicked out of my sister's school!" Rhia said. Kaylee scowled at her.

"I win!" Emma said happily as her piece got to the end.

"Emma!" Kara snapped, "I was nearly there!" Emma stuck her tongue out at Kara then grinned.

"Jessie wants to know what you playing?" Kaylee asked as she knelt up, Jessie surgically attached to her arm.

"Nothing interesting." Rhia said. "Come on, lets go and have a snowball fight."

"Can we come?" Kaylee asked hopefully.

"No." Rhia, Emma and Kara said together.

"Oh come on guys." Harry said, "They're only little." Emma looked at Harry.

"They got us into trouble, remember?" Emma said.

"So? They're only little." Harry said.

"They still can't join us." Rhia said. She pulled a scarf around her neck and went out to get her coat and gloves. Emma and Kara followed suit and Harry was left looking at the two upset looking twins.

"I have an idea." Harry said with a grin. Kaylee and Jessie looked at him.

"Can we help?" Kaylee asked. Jessie nodded eagerly. Harry scowled.

"Well, you might have to let go of each other." Harry said scratching his head.

"Ok." Kaylee said. Jessie and Kaylee reluctantly let go of each other's arms reluctantly. Harry grinned.

"Follow me." Harry said. He ran up the stairs with the twins in tow. He pushed open his window and picked up his broom. "I need one of you with me. Um, Jessie." Harry said. Kaylee scowled as Harry and Jessie got onto the broom. Jessie grinning broadly.

"But I want go on broom!" Kaylee said.

"You go and try and get Rhia, Emma and Kara under the roof by the kitchen." Harry said, "But wait for my signal."

* * *

Harry and Jessie hid behind the huge pile of snow they'd accumulated on the roof of the house. The roof was now void of all snow except the huge pile. Harry stood up and waved his hands at Kaylee, who was looking up at him. Kaylee ran to Emma, Rhia and Kara and pulled their hair. Soon all three girls were chasing after Kaylee. Harry watched carefully as Kaylee ran to the house. He looked at Jessie.

"One, two, three" Harry and Jessie pushed on the pile of snow and it slid off the roof. Jessie nearly went with it but Harry caught her foot and Jessie hung upside down off the roof with Harry holding onto the chimney pot. Jessie was grinning as she saw Kaylee jumping up and down happily.

"Ok," Harry said. "You are too heavy!" He said, pulling Jessie up. Jessie grinned and made no effort to ease Harry's struggle to get her back up on the roof. Soon the two of them were on the floor, Harry's broom in Kaylee's hand.

"Have any of them wriggled out?" Harry asked. Kaylee shook her head. A small pile of snow soon started to crumble and the top of Rhia's head appeared. Kaylee brought the broom over her head and hit Rhia's head.

"DONG!" Kaylee said as Rhia gave a shout and struggled out.

"You little!" Rhia didn't finish the sentence as Kaylee gave a scream and hid behind Harry. Rhia stopped trying to chase Kaylee and looked at Harry.

"You fancy turning your friends into snowmen?" He asked with a grin. Rhia smiled slightly.

"Um..." Rhia started to say but Jessie and Kaylee were already beginning to shape the snow.

"You might as well." Harry said. He went over to join Kaylee so Rhia wouldn't kill the young girl. Rhia shivered slightly with cold then went over to join Jessie.

"Who's this?" Rhia asked. Jessie shrugged and looked at Kaylee.

"Kara." Kaylee said. Rhia looked at her younger sisters.

"How do you do that?" Rhia asked.

"What?" Kaylee asked.

"Tell what the other is thinking." Harry said, "It's like you're psychic" Kaylee looked at Jessie and they both broke out into grins.

"No" Kaylee said. "We just know our sister's thoughts. Jessie knows everyone's thoughts." Kaylee said. Rhia and Harry looked at each other uncertainly.

"Like mum?" Rhia asked. Jessie nodded with a grin.

"Fun." Harry said. Rhia made a small snowball and threw it at Harry. Harry laughed and threw one back. Soon Harry and Rhia were in a full snowball fight. Kaylee and Jessie looked at each other.

"Older children!" Kaylee said rolling her eyes and tutting. Jessie nodded in agreement before they went back to their snowman building.

* * *

Harry was smiling innocently at the TV as Emma sat curled up in a thick duvet and a cup of pepper-up potion in her hands. James had been the one to drag Emma and Kara out of their snowy casts. Kara was curled up in the duvet as well while the twins shared a duvet and Rhia and Harry had duvets to themselves. They'd all gotten so wet while playing in the snow they had been shivering. So James, being the genius he was, didn't know what to do so just wrapped them up in duvets and brewed up some Pepper-up potion. Kaylee and Jessie seemed to love seeing the steam shoot out of their ears so took a sip of pepper-up potion every few seconds just to laugh at each other.

Kara and Emma were rather annoyed at Harry and Rhia but the two weren't that concerned, they knew that Kara and Emma would get over it. Rhia was actually starting to fall asleep in the duvet. It was so warm and comfy in the duvet.

"I bet you three Galleons that Rhia will be asleep before Lily comes home." Sirius said to James. James looked at Sirius vaguely amused

"You want to bet on your daughter?" James asked. Sirius nodded. James rolled his eyes. "Fine. You're on." Sirius grinned and went over to pick up Rhia. She let Sirius take her to a chair and hug her. She rested her head on his chest and was slowly falling asleep.

"There's too many children." James said. "All we need is Orion and Bo to complete the mix"

"Well, April's taken Orion to see her parents. I'm not sure why." Sirius said. He kissed the top of Rhia's head.

"James! I'm home" Lily called. Rhia started slightly and hit Sirius' chin as Lily walked into the room and smiled at all the children who were all falling asleep or where asleep.

"Ow." She moaned silently. James started laughing and held out his hand.

"Three Galleons Padfoot." He said with a grin. Lily looked at the two men suspiciously.

"What are you doing?" Lily asked as Sirius dug into his pockets to get the coins.

"Betting." James said.

"On what?" Lily asked. Sirius threw the coins over to James but Lily caught them.

"Lily!" James complained.

"On what James?" Lily said teasingly.

"On Rhia." James said. Sirius coughed

"Suck up" He said while coughing. Lily smiled and pocketed the coins.

"Thank you." Lily said with a smile. "You're a good husband." Lily said patting James' head. James glared at her for a moment. Lily turned and surveyed the sleeping children. She smiled slightly and turned to James. "A coin for your troubles." Lily said tossing a galleon at him. James grinned and caught it.

"Thank you" He said with a smile. Sirius sighed and rolled his eyes.

* * *

"Kaylee, hurry up I need to take you to school." Sirius called up the stairs. Kaylee and Jessie looked at each other. Instead of the grey uniform that Jessie had to wear, she wore a blue one. Kaylee wore her old uniform. She took off her necklace and handed it to Jessie as Jessie handed Kaylee her own one.

"Remember, be me" Kaylee said. Jessie gave Kaylee a bored look, "Yes, you have to talk!" Jessie's eyes narrowed slightly, "Why? Because you are being me!" Kaylee said. Jessie gave an annoyed sigh and left the room with Kaylee's lunch. Kaylee put on Jessie's necklace. Great, an entire day of having to be silent! As Jessie left the house, she was thinking a similar thing, _Great, an entire day of having to talk!_

"Hey, Jessie come on, we'll be late for school" Rhia called.

"Co-" Kaylee started to say then remembered she had to be absolutely silent. She picked up Jessie's lunch and ran down the stairs to where Rhia stood with Orion. Kaylee gave Rhia an innocent smile. She still had a bit of a bruise where Kaylee had hit her with a broom. Orion looked at Kaylee carefully, Kaylee was careful to be quiet. Of all of Kaylee and Jessie's family, and of everyone they knew Orion could tell them apart easier then anyone else.

"Come on, lets go." Rhia said, pulling on some gloves.

* * *

Harry sat at a table with his friends. As a prefect in his school he had to stay in the lunch hall and help the dinner ladies keep an eye on the younger years. Normally he'd try and keep an eye out on the twins but since Kaylee had been expelled he had been relieved at that duty but he still glanced over at Jessie from time to time. She had been slightly quieter then usual since Kaylee left...if that was possible! He glanced over and saw her with a sandwich in her hand. He smiled and turned to his friends.

"What school are you going to go to after this school?" Asked a boy with spiky brown hair. He looked like someone had decided to ruffle up his hair more then usual.

"Don't know." Harry said with a shrug. He couldn't exactly tell is friends he was hoping to go to Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and wizardry could he?

"What do you mean you don't know?" another of his friends asked.

"Well, I might go to boarding school" Harry said. His friends frowned.

"Why?" the boy with spiky hair asked. Harry shrugged.

"Mum and dad want me to go."

"Don't they love you?" asked another boy with a grin. Harry looked at him. "Hey scarhead, I thought you were weird but if your parent's don't want you-" Harry stood up looking at the boy angrily. The boy with spiky hair stood up as well and held onto Harry's arm tightly.

"I'm not weird and my parents do love me!" Harry snapped.

"Then why are they sending you away? They obviously don't love you." The boy said with a laugh to his friends

"You don't know what you're talking about Matthew!" Harry said,

"Of course I know what I'm talking about." Matthew said. "Your parents are sending you away because you're weird and they don't love you!" Matthew's friends all started laughing.

"Harry's not weird, and you know that!" the boy with spiky hair said,

"Oh, then how do you explain how he suddenly ended up the top of the tallest tree in the playground in P.E?" Matthew asked with a smirk. Harry was about to say something when something hit the back of his head. Harry put a hand to what had hit him. It came away covered in yoghurt. Matthew started laughing as Harry turned around. It seemed that several children had started throwing food at each other.

"Oh no." The boy with spiky hair said as he saw what was happening. Harry's mouth fell open. How did this happen without anyone notice? He was about to go and find someone when he saw Jessie running out of the lunch hall laughing. She was holding something in her hands and running with a wicked grin. Harry frowned and began to follow her. She disappeared from the hall but Harry saw the door of the girls toilets swinging shut.

"Uh oh" Harry muttered. He was deciding whether he should go to get a teacher or not when there was a sudden explosion from the loos. Jessie came running out of the girls toilets and ran straight into Harry, knocking him over.

"Hi Harry" She said with a grin before running in the opposite direction. Harry scowled, Jessie just spoke to him, Jessie never spoke to him.

"Oh-" Harry got to his feet. "Kaylee!" Harry said running after her.

Kaylee ran through the infant departments laughing. She didn't know where she was going but she knew that she couldn't be found in or near the lunch hall. She turned to see Harry running after her. She stuck out her tongue then collided with something rather solid. Kaylee fell backwards and shook her head to clear it. She looked up and into the face of Mrs. Hardy.

"Uh oh" Kaylee said, her smile disappearing. Harry skid to a stop and looked at Mrs. Hardy apprehensively.

"Mrs. Hardy." Harry said uncertainly. Mrs. Hardy's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"A Potter and a Black. I should have known that one of you two would be in trouble!" She said.

"I was just trying to catch her. I swear I didn't do anything." Harry said. Kaylee looked at Harry with a frown. Mrs. Hardy took Kaylee by the arm and pulled her towards the office. Kaylee looked at Harry with a pleading look but Harry looked torn between following them or staying.

* * *

"I can't believe it! What did we do wrong Sirius. What is wrong with these two!" April snapped. Sirius looked at Kaylee and Jessie with a stern look. April was nearly frantic.

"Sorry." Kaylee muttered.

"Sorry!" Sirius said, "You think Sorry will put you back into that school? If you two would just behave for a moment you'd save us so much trouble! Why do you two behave like you do?" Sirius asked, his arms crossed. April looked at Sirius with surprise. Was Sirius telling off his children? Kaylee and Jessie looked terrified. "Now we have to try and get the other one of you into another school. Kaylee, we'll be lucky if we can get Jessie into your school. Are you trying to make things harder for yourselves and for us?" Jessie and Kaylee looked utterly confused. April's mouth was on the verge of dropping open.

"Sorry?" Kaylee asked. She clearly hadn't understood what Sirius was trying to talk about.

"Go to your rooms and stay there!" Sirius said. "Kaylee, you're moving into Rhia's room!"

"What!" Rhia screamed from the door. April and Sirius turned to the door to see Rhia and Orion looking into the room. "Why do I have to get Kaylee? Can't she go with Orion? Or give me Jessie? Not Kaylee! Please!" Rhia begged.

"Rhia, be quiet and do as your dad says." April said. "Maybe it'll teach you all to behave."

"I hate you two!" Rhia said to the twins. Rhia stormed off to her room. Orion was giggling and was biting his lip to stop himself from laughing.

"Be quiet Orion" Sirius snapped. Orion went quiet and ran upstairs to carry on his laughing and to possibly bug Rhia.

* * *

Harry and Emma sat on their mum's bed while Lily brushed her hair.

"But where are you going?" Emma asked.

"Out with your dad." Lily said with a smile.

"Why?" Emma asked.

"Because they're married." Harry said to Emma. Emma was lying on her front and watching her mum with awe. Harry was going through Lily's make up bag and looking at the make up in horror and wondering why the hell anyone would want to put this stuff on their face. Lily laughed at Harry's comment and looked at her children through the mirror.

"What are you wearing?" Emma asked with a smile. Lily turned to Emma while she was in the process of putting her hair up into an intricate bun.

"I'm wearing some dress robes."

"Why are you going out?" Emma asked, "Who will look after us if you leave us on our own?"

"Yeah!" Harry said, looking up. Lily laughed and turned around as she did something to her bun. Carefully she took her hands away and when it didn't fall apart she grinned to herself. In the past she'd had to do that with April or Jenny's help. Lily admired her handiwork for a moment before the tune coming over the radio caught her attention.

"Oh, Emma put the volume up." Lily said, "I love this song." Lily said moving her head with a beat.

"What song is it?" Harry asked. Emma stood by the radio putting the volume up. It was a muggle radio.

"You might not ever get rich" Lily sang with the radio, "But lemme tell ya it's better then diggin' a ditch" Emma laughed and Harry looked at Lily rather amused. Lily laughed then picked up her brush. "There's no telling who you might meet, a movie star or an Indian chief-" Lily sang into her brush. Harry started laughing. "Come here Emma" Emma went to Lily and Lily started dancing with her to the music.

_Workin' at the Car wash_

_Workin' at the car wash yeah!_

Emma laughed as she danced with her mum. Lily grinned at her and looked at Harry who was bouncing on the bed to the music.

"Come on and sing it with me-" Lily said, she threw Harry a brush.

"Working at the car wash yeah!" Harry tried to sing into the brush while laughing.

"Come summer the work gets kinda hard." Lily sang. Emma jumped on the bed and started dancing on the bed with Harry. Lily watched her children rather impressed. Harry wasn't that bad at dancing, as for Emma, she was just like any other young girl.

"This ain't no place to be if you're plannin' on being a star" Lily sang. She remembered the dance moves from when she was younger, she had loved this song when it had come out. She started doing the dance moves to the song while Emma and Harry cheered her on.

_Lemme tell you it's always cool_

_And the boss don't mind if sometimes you're a fool_

"At the Car wash yeah!" Emma and Harry sang together, Lily laughed slightly as Emma jumped down to join her.

"Talkin' about the car wash yeah!" Lily said, Lily threw all her self respect the window and decided to pretend she was on stage. Emma and Harry laughed as Lily did so. "Come on sing it for me, Car wash. Car Wash yeah!" Lily sang. Harry laughed and jumped down to join Emma and Lily as well.

"Work and work! Will those Cars never stop com-" Lily pulled open the door and was about to go out when she nearly crashed into James. "-ming" Lily finished lamely. James was giving her a highly amused look.

"Where you singing Lily Potter?" James aside with a laugh.

"No." Lily said throwing her brush quickly to Emma. Emma looked at the brush. Harry handed the brush he had to Emma as well and went back to the bed. Lily cleared her throat and put her hands to her hair. James laughed and pulled off his auror robes.

"I don't believe you Lily." James said.

"Mum was dancing as wel-" Lily cupped a hand over Emma's mouth. Lily was going slightly red. James laughed even more.

"Will you be giving me a rendition of any song soon?" James asked putting his arms around Lily.

"In your dreams." Lily said, "I don't sing for anyone." Lily said.

"Except Harry and Emma apparently." James said. He gave Lily a soft kiss on the lips. Lily smiled slightly.

"Ok, maybe later." Lily said leaning in for another kiss.

"Mum." Harry said in a dangerous tone. Lily turned to look at Harry with a smile.

"Harry." Lily said.

"Stop kissing. It's rude don't you know." Lily blushed again and turned to James.

"You're a bad influence James." Lily said flicking his nose playfully. James laughed.

"Get ready Lily, the ball is starting in an hour." Lily stopped dead.

"An hour!" Lily asked. She turned to look at James.

"Yes. An hour, why?" James said with a confused expression.

"Oh damn. That's not enough time to get ready." Lily said.

"What? It's plenty of time."

"Workin' at the car wash yeah!" Emma sang as she decided to carry on dancing and singing on her own. James laughed and put his arms around Lily.

"I think she takes after you." James said. Lily hit him lightly before grabbing her make up bag off Harry and sitting down at the make up table.

"You are impossible James." Lily said. James grinned and kissed her shoulder quickly before going to hunt for his own dress robes.

* * *

**A/N:-I have been waiting soooo long to write that last scene. I jsut didn't know where to put it and then came the end and I thought....ah, perfect. The perfect ending scene, me thinks. I hope you did do your homework and got to know hte song car wash. That was the bestest scene to write EVER!!**

**Anyway, the sequel is called.....A New Beginning....I'm having a thing for beginnings and endings, cause i think i might name the story after...Another End....snazzy isn't it? lol. It's going to get so confusing for me. Anyway. A few people have asked as to who falles through the viel it is..........SECRET!! :-p I'll put up the introduction soon. I'm on chapter 3 of hte next story, tis going well. There will be some stuff that will refer to the past stories, (particularly to The End and Glittering MAsquerade) But it'll all be explained in the story.**

**I hope you enjoyed this story, you've all been so great and suportive. Now that School has started, I'll try and do my best with this.**


End file.
